Ex  Libris 
C.  K.  OGDEN    ' 


THE  LIBRARY 

OF 
THE  UNIVERSITY 

OF  CALIFORNIA 
LOS  ANGELES 


\ 


THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED   QUEEN 


SOPHIE    DOROTHKA. 


Prom  a  painting  formerly  at  Ahldcii. 


THE     LOVE     OF     AN 
UNCROWNED     QUEEN 

SOPHIE  DOROTHEA,  CONSORT  OF 

GEORGE    I.,    and     her    Correspondence    with 
PHILIP    CHRISTOPHER  COUNT   KONIGSMARCK    (Now 
first  published  from    the   originals] 


W.    H.    WILKINS 

M.A.  (Clare  College,  Cambridge),  F.S.A. 
Author  of  "  Caroline  the  Illustrious,  t$ueen  Consort  of  George  II. 


NEW   AND    REVISED    EDITION 


WITH  ILLUSTRATIONS 


LONGMANS,     GREEN,     AND     CO. 

39   PATERNOSTER  ROW,   LONDON 

NEW  YORK  AND  BOMBAY 

1903 


DD 


PREFACE  TO  THE   REVISED  EDITION. 

WHEN  this  book  was  first  published  in  April,  1900, 
I  had  no  idea  that  it  contained  any  of  the  ele- 
ments of  popularity.  The  subject  which  it  treats 
had  been  of  interest  with  me  for  years,  and  my 
researches  were  made  from  love  of  the  work.  In 
my  quest  I  followed  as  closely  as  possible  the  foot- 
steps of  Sophie  Dorothea  during  her  life.  I  visited 
Celle  where  she  was  born,  Hanover  where  she 
lived  during  her  unhappy  marriage,  and  Ahlden 
where  for  more  than  thirty  years  she  was  im- 
prisoned. To  Hanover  I  went  again  and  again, 
and  in  connection  with  this  book  I  also  visited 
Berlin  and  Dresden.  But  it  was  not  until  six 
years  ago,  in  1897,  tnat  I  lighted  by  chance  (while 
turning  over  old  volumes  in  a  second-hand  book- 
shop at  Leipzig)  upon  the  fact  that  an  unpublished 
correspondence  between  Sophie  Dorothea  and 
Konigsmarck  existed.  For  a  long  time  I  could 
not  find  where  these  letters  were  deposited,  and 
went  in  vain  search  to  Upsala,  but  at  last  I  learned 
that  they  were  reposing  in  the  library  of  the  little 
university  of  Lund  in  Sweden.  To  Lund  accord- 
ingly I  went,  and  with  the  permission  of  the  uni- 
versity authorities  carefully  examined  the  manu- 
scripts. The  result  of  my  investigations  is  described 
at  length  in  the  chapter  on  "The  History  and 


vi  PREFACE 

Authenticity  of  the  Letters ".  It  was  the  finding 
of  these  letters  which  determined  me  to  write  this 
book  ;  it  is  built  up  around  them. 

Even  when  the  book  was  written  I  published 
it  with  misgiving,  thinking  it  would  have  little 
interest  for  any  except  the  few  who  love  the 
untrodden  paths  and  byeways  of  history.  But, 
contrary  to  expectation,  the  book  attracted  a  good 
deal  of  attention  both  in  England  and  America. 
In  France  and  Germany  too  it  called  forth  com- 
ment, and  in  a  short  time  several  editions  were 
exhausted,  until  at  last  it  ran  out  of  print. 

By  that  time  I  had  learned  something  from 
my  critics,  more  especially  from  those  in  Germany, 
and  I  determined  not  to  issue  another  edition,  until 
I  had  the  opportunity  of  testing  what  I  had  written 
in  the  light  of  further  historical  research.  I  was 
then  working  at  another  book,  Caroline  the  Illustri- 
ous, Queen  Consort  of  George  //.,  which  also  treats 
of  the  Hanoverian  period,  at  a  little  later  date, 
and  until  that  book  was  finished,  I  had  not  the 
leisure  to  follow  up  fresh  clues  in  connection  with 
this  one.  Hence  the  publication  of  this  revised 
edition  has  been  delayed,  for  the  book  has  been  out 
of  print  some  little  time. 

Another  consideration  has  also  weighed  with 
me,  namely  the  fact,  of  which  I  was  ignorant  when 
the  first  edition  was  published,  that  a  further  in- 
stalment of  the  correspondence  between  Sophie 
Dorothea  and  Konigsmarck  is  preserved  in  the 
Secret  State  Archives  at  Berlin.  The  letters 
herein  are  all  from  Lund,  and  found  their  way 
into  Sweden  through  Amalie,  Countess  Lewen- 
haupt,  Konigsmarck's  sister,  who  married  a  Swedish 
nobleman  and  eventually  settled  in  Sweden.  But 
there  are  others. 


PREFACE  vii 

It  was  known  that,  after  the  catastrophe  of  July 
i,  1694,  the  Hanoverian  Government  seized  many 
of  the  letters  that  had  passed  between  the  lovers, 
and  these  were  used  against  the  Princess  with 
crushing  effect,  to  bring  about  her  divorce  on 
Hanover's  own  terms.  As  Leibniz  says,  "  They 
would  never  have  believed  at  Celle  that  she  was 
so  guilty  had  not  her  letters  been  produced  'V  The 
fate  of  these  letters  has  long  been  a  mystery.  It 
was  known  that  Duke  George  William  wished  them 
to  be  sent  to  Celle  to  be  destroyed,  but  the  Elector 
Ernest  Augustus  refused  and  kept  them  at  Hanover. 
It  was  afterwards  rumoured  that  George  II.,  on  his 
first  visit  to  Hanover  after  his  accession  to  the 
English  throne,  burned  them  with  his  own  hands, 
to  conceal  all  traces  of  his  mother's  disgrace,  but 
the  rumour  was  unfounded.  It  now  appears  that 
all,  or  nearly  all,  of  them  are  in  existence,  and  some 
are  those  preserved  in  the  Secret  State  Archives  of 
Berlin. 

The  exact  way  in  which  these  letters  reached 
Berlin  is  unknown,  but  they  have  been  there  a  long 
time.  According  to  the  Calendar  of  the  Secret 
State  Archives  they  were  found  among  the  private 
papers  of  Frederick  the  Great  at  Sans  Souci,  after 
his  death.  The  luckless  prisoner  of  Ahlden  was 
his  grandmother,  her  daughter,  the  second  Queen 
of  Prussia,  was  his  mother.  It  is  known  that  the 
Queen  of  Prussia  was  much  interested  in  the  fate 
of  her  unhappy  mother,  she  corresponded  with  her 
secretly,  and  at  one  time  sought  to  obtain  her  release. 
It  is  probable,  therefore,  that  these  letters  (a  part 
of  the  incriminating  correspondence  seized  by  the 


1  Written  by  Leibniz  on  the  margin  of  an  account  of  the  divorce  sent  by 
the  Duchess  of  Orleans  to  the  Electress  Sophia  (vide  Kocher's  Hist.  Zeitschrift, 
vol.  xlviii.,  p.  233,  note). 


viii  PREFACE 

Hanoverian  Government)  were  sent  to  Berlin  by 
order  of  George  I.  to  convince  his  daughter,  the 
Queen  of  Prussia,  of  her  mother's  errors  and  so 
disarm  her  sympathy.  After  the  Queen's  death 
the  letters  were  not  returned  to  Hanover ;  they 
passed  into  the  hands  of  Frederick  the  Great, 
and  thence  into  the  safe  keeping  of  the  Berlin 
State  Archives. 

The  correspondence  between  Sophie  Dorothea 
and  Konigsmarck  is  very  voluminous.  The  greater 
part  of  it  (six  hundred  and  seventy-nine  sheets,  one 
hundred  and  ninety-nine  from  the  Princess  and  four 
hundred  and  eighty  from  Konigsmarck)  is  preserved 
in  the  university  library  of  Lund.  The  letters  at 
Berlin  number  sixty-five  sheets,  fifteen  from  the 
Princess  and  fifty  from  Konigsmarck.  It  is  certain 
that  the  letters  at  Berlin  and  those  at  Lund  spring 
from  the  same  source,  the  exact  similarity  of  the 
writing,  the  use  of  the  same  cypher  and  the  same 
nicknames,  the  identity  of  sentiment  and  style,  and 
the  fact  that  some  of  the  Berlin  letters  seem  to  be 
answers  to  some  of  those  at  Lund  and  vice  versa, 
prove  this  beyond  doubt.  Clearly  they  stand  or  fall 
together.  Applying  to  the  Berlin  letters  the  same 
tests  as  applied  to  those  at  Lund,  they  yield  absolutely 
the  same  results. 

The  Berlin  letters  afford  little  historical  interest 
outside  the  politics  of  the  petty  courts  of  Hanover 
and  Celle.  Like  those  at  Lund  they  are  alternately 
full  of  jealous  reproaches  and  passionate  avowals 
of  love.  They  shed  no  fresh  light  on  the  events 
immediately  preceding  the  catastrophe  of  July  i, 
1694,  for  they  appear  to  be  written  prior  to  the  visit 
Konigsmarck  made  to  Dresden  before  he  returned 
to  Hanover  for  the  last  time.  Letters  must  have 
passed  between  the  lovers  in  the  months  preceding 


PREFACE  ix 

the  tragedy,  and  these  are  still  needed  to  make  the 
•correspondence  complete.  But  they  are  not  at  Berlin, 
they  are  not  at  Lund,  they  are  not  at  Hanover.  The 
question  remains,  Where  are  they  ? 

Last  summer,  when  in  Germany,  I  learned 
that  more  love-letters  of  Sophie  Dorothea  and 
Konigsmarck  still  existed,  over  and  above  those 
at  Lund  and  Berlin.  I  learned  this  important 
fact  from  a  trustworthy  source  which  I  arn  not 
permitted  at  present  to  make  public.  These  re- 
maining letters  were  preserved  at  Hanover  until 
1866,  not  in  the  Royal  Archives,  but  among  the 
Guelph  domestic  papers  at  Herrenhausen.  When 
the  late  King  of  Hanover,  George  V.,  was  wrong- 
fully despoiled  of  his  kingdom  by  Prussia,  and 
forced  to  live  in  exile,  he  rightly  took  his  family 
papers  with  him  into  Austria.  Among  those 
papers  was  some  of  the  correspondence  between 
his  ancestress  Sophie  Dorothea  and  Konigsmarck. 
These  letters  are  now  in  the  possession  of  his  son, 
the  Duke  of  Cumberland,  de  jure  King  of  Hanover, 
at  Gmiinden.  What  their  contents  are  I  am  un- 
able to  say,  but  it  is  probable  that  they  contain  the 
missing  links  wanted  to  make  the  chain  of  the  cor- 
respondence complete.  It  is  my  desire  some  day 
to  translate  the  whole  correspondence  at  Lund, 
at  Berlin,  and  at  Gmiinden,  and  arrange  it  in 
chronological  order  with  the  aid  of  first-hand 
documentary  evidence  drawn  from  other  sources. 
(But  this,  of  course,  depends  upon  the  necessary 
permission  being  granted.)  For  this  reason,  and 
because  they  shed  no  fresh  light  on  the  tragedy, 
I  have  not  given  herein  any  of  the  Berlin  letters. 
On  the  contrary,  I  have  omitted  from  this  edition 
a  few  of  those  letters  published  in  the  first,  which 
were  merely  a  repetition  of  others ;  their  great 


x  PREFACE 

similarity  of  style  and  sentiment  tended  to  weary 
rather  than  to  edify.1 

I  should  like  to  repeat  that  this  book  is  largely 
based  upon  papers  found  in  the  Hanoverian  archives 
and  elsewhere,  duly  specified  in  footnotes.  The 
despatches  of  Sir  William  Dutton  Colt,  of  Cresset 
and  of  Poley,  English  envoys  at  Hanover  during 
the  period  under  consideration,  and  of  Stepney, 
sometime  English  envoy  at  Dresden,  now  preserved 
in  the  State  Paper  Office,  London,  have  also  been 
drawn  upon  freely.  To  this  list  of  hitherto  unpub- 
lished documents  there  remain  to  be  added  many 
letters  from  the  correspondence  at  Lund,  translated 
from  the  French  of  the  original  documents.  These 
have  never  before  been  published  in  English  and 
(except  for  a  few  unimportant  extracts  in  a  Swedish 
book  long  since  out  of  print)  have  never  been  pub- 
lished in  any  language.  I  may  claim  to  be  the  first 
to  edit  and  arrange  this  correspondence  in  some- 
thing like  chronological  order,  and  to  compare  it 
with  historical  documents  of  undoubted  authenticity 
with  a  view  to  proving  its  genuineness. 

Every  effort  was  made  in  the  first  edition  to  render 
this  biography  as  complete  as  possible.  I  have  now 
in  the  light  of  subsequent  knowledge  revised  the 
text.  I  find  little  to  add  and  little  to  take  away. 
My  additions  are  chiefly  in  matters  of  detail,  and  will 
be  found  in  notes  scattered  throughout  the  volume. 
These  notes  for  the  most  part  either  go  to  prove 
further  the  genuineness  of  the  letters,  or  to  quote 
fuller  authorities  for  the  text — to  specify  more  clearly 


1 1  have  also  condensed  the  later  chapters  which  deal  with  the  death  of 
the  Electress  Sophia  and  the  accession  of  George  I.  to  the  English  throne. 
These  events  are  not  strictly  germane  to  the  history  of  Sophie  Dorothea,  and 
moreover  I  have  treated  of  them  much  more  fully  in  Caroline  the  Illustrious, 
Queen  Consort  of  George  II.,  which  may  be  regarded  as  a  sequel  to  this- 
book. 


PREFACE  xi 

what  is  founded  on  first-hand  historical  evidence, 
'  and  what  is  derived  from  less  trustworthy  sources. 

In  this  I  should  like  to  acknowledge  the  help 
I  have  derived  from  my  critics,  more  especially  from 
the  writer  of  the  review  of  my  book  in  the  Edinburgh 
Review?  and  the  essay  by  Dr.  Robert  Geerds,  the 
eminent  German  critic  and  historian  in  the  Allge- 
meine  Zeitung? 

The  writer  in  the  Edinburgh  Review,  an  expert 
who  has  himself  examined  the  contested  letters  at 
Lund,  and  the  admittedly  genuine  ones  at  Hanover, 
and  compared  them,  says  in  contravention  of  a  doubt 
cast  on  their  genuineness  :— 

"Allowing  for  the  interval  of  time  and  for  the 
difference  of  circumstances  under  which  the  [Prin- 
cess's] love-letters  to  Konigsmarck  and  her  formal 
letters  to  the  Electress  were  respectively  written,  we 
have  no  hesitation  in  saying  that  it  is  impossible, 
after  placing  the  handwritings  side  by  side,  to  assert 
that  there  is  no  resemblance  between  them.  We 
have  also  had  an  opportunity  of  comparing  a  photo- 
graph of  Konigsmarck's  abbreviated  signature  with 
photographs  of  genuine  signatures  of  his  preserved 
at  Lund  and  at  Hanover  respectively,  and  no  doubt 
whatever  is  left  in  our  mind  as  to  the  genuineness 
of  the  (abbreviated)  signature  in  the  impugned 
correspondence." 

And  again  : — 

"  After  much  careful  consideration  we  feel  bound 
to  express  our  belief  that  the  probability  of  these 
letters  having  been  written  by  Sophie  Dorothea  and 
Konigsmarck  is  a  very  strong  one  indeed  ".  .  .  . 

1  The  Love  of  an  Uncrowned  Queen,  Edinburgh  Review,  January,  1901, 
No.  395,  pp.  56-86. 

2"  The  Letters  of  the  Duchess  of  Ahlden  and  Count  Philip  Christopher 
von  Konigsmarck,"  by  Dr.  Robert  Geerds  (Supplement  to  the  Allgemeine 
Zeitung,  1902,  No.  77). 


xii  PREFACE 

Dr.     Robert   Geerds,    who    has    examined    and 
compared  the  letters  at  Lund  with  those  at  Berlin' 
as  well  as  Hanover,  says  :— 

"The  writing  of  some  of  the  Lund  letters  .  .  . 
corresponds  so  noticeably  with  the  Hanoverian 
writing  that  it  is  impossible  to  doubt  they  were 
written  by  Sophie  Dorothea". 

And  again,  after  reference  to  my  discoveries  of 
the-  undesigned  coincidences  between  incidents 
mentioned  in  the  letters  and  in  Colt's  despatches  :— 

"No  unprejudiced  person  can  any  longer  doubt 
that  in  this  correspondence,  which  has  been  called 
into  question,  we  have  the  true  and  genuine  love- 
letters  of  the  unfortunate  pair  whose  tragic  fate  has 
met  with  such  universal  sympathy  V 

I  should  like  to  thank  Dr.  Carl  Petersen, 
Assistant  Librarian  at  Lund  University,  for  his 
courtesy  and  assistance ;  Count  Carl  Lewenhaupt 
(sometime  Swedish  and  Norwegian  Minister  in 
London)  for  procuring  me  the  portrait  of  Aurora 
Konigsmarck,  now  in  the  possession  of  the  elder 
branch  of  the  Lewenhaupt  family ;  Count  C.  G. 
von  Rosen  for  permission  to  reproduce  the  por- 
trait of  Philip  Christopher  Konigsmarck  ;  Count 
Kielmansegg  for  allowing  me  to  see  Lady  Darling- 
ton's patent  of  peerage  at  Giilzow  ;  and  Count 
Erich  Kielmansegg  for  calling  my  attention  to  a 
slight  error  in  the  history  of  the  Lund  letters, 
corrected  in  this  edition. 

As  an  edition  of  this  book  has  been  published 
in  America  without  my  knowledge  or  consent,  and 


1 1  quote  from  these  critics  because  they  have  examined  the  letters  them- 
selves and  can  speak  with  first-hand  knowledge.  I  do  so  with  more  freedom 
because  they  have  not  been  slow  in  pointing  out  my  shortcomings.  I  should 
also  like  to  express  my  indebtedness  for  many  other  critical  reviews,  notably 
to  the  Athentzum,  to  Monsieur  de  Wyzewa  for  his  essay  in  the  Revue  des 
deux  Mondes,  and  to  Mr.  Andrew  Lang  in  Longman's  Magazine. 


PREFACE  xiii 

as  it  is,  moreover,  full  of  grammatical  and  other 
errors,  for  which  I  am  not  responsible,  I  take  this 
opportunity  of  saying  that  this  is  the  only  authorised 
edition  for  sale  in  America. 

In  conclusion,  I  should  like  to  repeat  what  I 
wrote  in  the  preface  to  my  first  edition  :  "  The  story 
of  the  romantic  life  of  this  uncrowned  Queen  has 
been  shrouded  in  mystery,  and  she  has  been  even 
more  misrepresented  than  Mary  Queen  of  Scots. 
Her  imprisonment  in  the  lonely  castle  of  Ahlden 
was  longer  and  more  rigorous  than  Mary's  captivity 
in  England,  and  the  assassination  of  Konigsmarck 
was  as  dramatic  as  the  murder  of  Rizzio." 

W.  H.  WILKINS. 
March,  1903. 


CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER  I. 

PAGE 

THE  ROMANCE  OF  THE  PRINCESS'S  PARENTAGE i 

CHAPTER  II. 
THE  PROGRESS  OF  ELEONORE         ....         ....       13 

CHAPTER  III. 
THE  WISDOM  OF  SERPENTS 25 

CHAPTER  IV. 
PRINCE  GEORGE  GOES  A-WooiNG 3$ 

CHAPTER  V. 
THE  SACRIFICE 47 

CHAPTER  VI. 
THE  COURT  OF  HANOVER       .         ...         .         .         .         .         -59 

CHAPTER  VII. 
THE  POWER  OF  COUNTESS  PLATEN 70 

CHAPTER  VIII. 
ENTER  KONIGSMARCK 82 

CHAPTER  IX. 
PLAYING  WITH  FIRE .         .         -94 

CHAPTER  X. 
THE  EMBROIDERED  GLOVE 107 


xvi  CONTENTS 

PAGE 

CHAPTER  XL 
HISTORY  AND  AUTHENTICITY  OF  THE  LETTERS n& 

CHAPTER  XII. 
THE  DAWN  OF  PASSION 139 

CHAPTER  XIII. 
CROSSING  THE  RUBICON 156 

CHAPTER  XIV. 
THE  PRINCESS'S  LETTERS 172 

CHAPTER  XV. 
DOUBTS  AND  FEARS .     189 

CHAPTER  XVI. 
THE  BATTLE  OF  STEINKIRK 204 

CHAPTER  XVII. 
THE  VISIT  TO  WIESBADEN 217 

CHAPTER  XVIII. 
KONIGSMARCK  RETURNS  FROM  THE  WAR       ......     235 

CHAPTER  XIX. 
THE  TRYST  AT  BROCKHAUSEN 256 

CHAPTER  XX. 
LOVE'S  BITTERNESS 277 

CHAPTER  XXI. 
THE  CAMPAIGN  AGAINST  THE  DANES 302 

CHAPTER  XXII. 
THE  GATHERING  STORM 325 

CHAPTER  XXIII. 
THE  MURDER  OF  KONIGSMARCK 340- 

CHAPTER  XXIV. 
THE  RUIN  OF  THE  PRINCESS 352 


CONTENTS  xvii 

CHAPTER  XXV. 
THE  DIVORCE         .        .    •   . 371 

CHAPTER  XXVI. 
THE  PRISONER  OF  AHLDEN 388 

CHAPTER  XXVII. 
THE  FLIGHT  OF  YEARS 405 

CHAPTER  XXVIII. 
CROWN  AND  GRAVE 421 

CHAPTER  XXIX. 
RETRIBUTION 437 

APPENDIX 445 

INDEX 


LIST  OF  ILLUSTRATIONS. 


SOPHIE  DOROTHEA.     From  a  painting  formerly  at  Ahlden      ,     Frontispiece. 

EL&ONORE  D'OLBREUSE,  DUCHESS  OF  CELLE.     From  a 

painting  at  Herrenhausen          .....     Facing  page         8 

THE  CASTLE  OF  CELLE „         ,,         26 

PRINCE  GEORGE  Louis  OF  HANOVER  (AFTERWARDS 
GEORGE  I.  OF  ENGLAND).  From  a  picture  at 
Hanover  .........  „  „  40 

THE  ELECTRESS  SOPHIA.     Photographed  from  the  statue 

in  the  gardens  of  Herrenhausen          ....          ,,          ,,          56 

THE  ALTE   PALAIS,  HANOVER.     From  a  photograph  by 

the  Author         ........          „          „          74 

KONIGSMARCK.     From  the  painting  at  Herrenhausen       .          „          „          94 

THE  LEINE  SCHLOSS,  HANOVER „         „        no 

THE    UNIVERSITY  LIBRARY,  LUND,   SWEDEN         .         .          ,,         ,,        128 

FACSIMILE  OF  ONE  OF  KONIGSMARCK' s  LETTERS  TO  THE 
PRINCESS.  Photographed  from  the  original  manu- 
script in  the  University  Library  of  Lund  ...  „  „  146 

FACSIMILE  OF  ONE  OF  SOPHIE  DOROTHEA'S  LETTERS  TO 
KONIGSMARCK.  Photographed  from  the  original 
manuscript  in  the  University  Library  of  Lund  .  ,,  „  174 

SOPHIE    DOROTHEA.      From    a   painting   formerly    at 

Ahlden,  now  at  Herrenhausen  .....          ,,          ,,        190 


xx  LIST  OF  ILLUSTRATIONS 

FACSIMILE  OF  ONE  OF  THE  PRINCESS'S  LETTERS  TO 
KONIGSMARCK.  Photographed  from  the  original 
manuscript  in  the  University  Library  at  Lund  .  Facing  page  206 

PHILIP  CHRISTOPHER  COUNT  KONIGSMARCK.  from  a 
painting  in  the  possession  of  Count  Gustav  Lewen- 
haupt ,.  ,.  224 

THE    COUNTESS    AURORA    KONIGSMARCK.      From    the 

painting  in  the  possession  of  Count  C.  G.  von  Rosen          „          „        244 

HERRENHAUSEN ,,         „       270 

THE  ELECTOR  ERNEST  AUGUSTUS  OF  HANOVER.     From 

an  old  print  in  the  British  Museum  ....          „          „        290 

THE  MURDER  OF  KONIGSMARCK.     From  an  old  print    .          ,,         „       348 

THE  CASTLE  OF  AHLDEN  AS  IT  WAS  WHEN  SOPHIE 
DOROTHEA  WAS  IMPRISONED  THERE.  From  an 
old  engraving  in  the  Castle  .....  ,,  „  362 

THE  CASTLE  OF  AHLDEN  AS  IT  is  TO-DAY  ...          „         „        376 

SOPHIE  DOROTHEA'S  WING  OF  THE  CASTLE  OF  AHLDEN. 

From  a  photograph  by  the  Author     ....          „          „        400 

SOPHIE  DOROTHEA,  SECOND  QUEEN  OF  PRUSSIA 
(DAUGHTER  OF  SOPHIE  DOROTHEA  AND  GEORGE  I.). 
From  the  painting  by  Johann  L.  Hirschmann  .  .  „  „  424 

THE  CHURCH  AT  CELLE,  WHERE  SOPHIE  DOROTHEA  is 

BURIED „         ,,       438 

THE  CASTLE  OF  OSNABRUCK „         „       442 


CHAPTER  I. 

THE  ROMANCE  OF  THE  PRINCESS'S  PARENTAGE. 

Life,  like  a  dome  of  many  coloured  glass, 
Stains  the  white  radiance  of  Eternity. 

SHELLEY. 

SOPHIE  DOROTHEA  of  Celle,  the  uncrowned  queen  of  the 
first  of  our  Hanoverian  kings,  came  of  the  ancient  and 
illustrious  family  of  Brunswick,  which  was  descended  from 
Henry  the  Lion,  Duke  of  Bavaria  and  Saxony,  who,  it  is 
interesting  to  note,  married  Matilda,  eldest  daughter  of 
King  Henry  II.  of  England.  It  is  not  necessary  to  dwell 
upon  the  glories  of  the  House  of  Brunswick,  but  the  im- 
mediate ancestry  of  Sophie  Dorothea  may  be  of  interest. 

After  the  Treaty  of  Westphalia,  which  was  somewhat 
disastrous  to  the  Brunswick  princes  who  took  part  in  the 
Thirty  Years  War,  this  family  was  divided  into  two 
branches,  Augustus  Duke  of  Brunswick  representing  one, 
and  Frederick  Duke  of  Brunswick-Liineburg  representing 
the  other. 

On  the  death  of  Augustus,  his  territories  were  divided 
amongst  his  three  sons,  with  only  one  of  whom  we  are 
concerned,  Duke  Antony  Ulrich  of  Wolfenbiittel.  It  is 
necessary  to  mention  him,  as  he  played  a  not  unimportant 
part  in  the  life  of  his  cousin,  Sophie  Dorothea  of  Celle. 
From  this  branch  of  the  family  the  Dukes  of  Brunswick 
are  descended,  and  it  gave  another  uncrowned  queen  to 
England  in  the  person  of  the  unfortunate  Caroline,  consort 
of  George  IV. 

Frederick  Duke  of  Brunswick-Liineburg  died  in  1649, 
leaving  the  four  sons  of  his  brother,  Duke  George,  his  heirs. 
Of  these,  the  eldest  son,  Christian  Louis,  was  given  the 
sovereign  principality  of  Celle,  then  the  most  important ; 
the  second  son,  George  William,  subsequently  the  father  of 


2     THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

Sophie  Dorothea,  was  given  the  sovereign  principality  of 
Hanover.  The  two  younger  sons,  John  Frederick  and 
Ernest  Augustus,  had  no  territory  at  first. 

When  the  four  ducal  brothers,  all  young  men,  entered 
upon  their  inheritance,  changes  took  place  in  the  sedate  and 
simple  courts  of  Hanover  and  Celle.  Hitherto  they  had 
been  typical  of  the  petty  German  courts  in  the  Middle  Ages, 
untouched  as  yet  by  foreign  influences.  According  to 
Vehse,  at  the  schloss  of  Celle  meals  were  served  daily  in 
the  great  hall,  at  nine  in  the  morning  and  at  four  in  the 
afternoon.  The  retainers  were  summoned  to  meals  by  a 
trumpeter  on  the  tower,  and  if  they  did  not  appear  punctually 
they  had  to  go  without.  As  they  ate,  a  page  went  round 
"  bidding  every  one  be  quiet  and  orderly,  forbidding  all 
swearing,  and  rudeness,  or  throwing  about  of  bread,  bones, 
or  roast,  or  pocketing  of  the  same  ".  The  butler  was  warned 
not  to  permit  noble  or  simple  to  enter  the  cellar  ;  the  squires 
were  allowed  beer  and  "sleep-drinks,"  but  wine  was  only 
served  at  the  Duke's  high  table.  All  accounts  were  care- 
fully kept,  and  bills  paid  weekly.  The  court  was  one  big 
family,  and  the  Duke  was  the  father  of  his  people.  But  this 
well-ordered  household  was  in  the  days  of  the  old  Duke 
Christian,  a  predecessor  of  the  four  young  princes  who  now 
divided  the  possessions  of  Brunswick-Liineburg. 

The  eldest,  Duke  Christian,  settled  down  to  a  fairly  quiet 
life  at  Celle;  "his  only  fault,"  we  hear,  "was  drinking,"  a 
very  venial  offence  in  those  days.  But  the  second  brother, 
Duke  George  William,  found  life  at  Hanover  unbearably 
tedious.  He  had  little  liking  for  the  stiff  and  monotonous 
routine  of  his  German  court ;  the  simple  lives  of  his  subjects 
bored  him,  and  their  rude  manners  and  coarse  habit  of 
living  disgusted  him.  Though  all  his  life  strongly  anti- 
French  in  his  politics,  he  belonged  to  the  newer  school  of 
German  princes  and  affected  the  society  and  fashions  of  the 
French,  so  much  so  that  on  one  occasion  a  French  envoy 
said  to  him  at  his  own  table :  "  But,  Monsigneur,  this  is 
charming  ;  there  is  no  foreigner  here  but  you  ".  Though  a 
young  man,  George  William  had  already  travelled  in  Italy, 
and  acquired  a  certain  polish  of  manners  and  superficial 
refinement  not  usually  to  be  found  among  German  princes 
of  his  time.  The  first  use  he  made  of  his  freedom  was  to 
escape  from  the  tedium  of  his  uninteresting  little  princi- 


THE  ROMANCE  OF  THE  PRINCESS'S  PARENTAGE    3 

pality,  and,  in  company  with  his  youngest  brother,  Ernest 
Augustus,  who  was  then  his  boon  companion,  and  largely 
dependent  upon  his  bounty,  he  made  another  tour  in  Italy, 
visiting  Milan  and  Venice.  At  Venice,  then  at  its  zenith, 
the  brothers  plunged  into  the  delights  and  dissipations 
which  the  gay  city  offered.  George  William  formed  an 
intimacy  with  a  Venetian  woman,  one  Signora  Buccolini, 
by  whom  he  had  a  son.  For  many  years  he  was  devoted 
to  her,  and  maintained  her  in  considerable  affluence  ;  for, 
with  all  his  faults,  he  was  of  a  generous  disposition.  But 
the  lady  was  of  so  passionate,  jealous,  and  exacting  a 
temperament  that  at  last  she  tired  the  patience  of  her 
protector.  After  many  quarrels  he  made  an  arrangement 
by  which  he  settled  a  sum  of  money  upon  the  mother,  and 
took  the  charge  of  the  boy's  education  upon  himself.  This 
was  the  final  separation.  He  took  back  the  young  Lucas 
Buccolini  with  him  to  Hanover,  clipped  his  Italian  name 
into  Bucco,  or  Buccow,  and  found  him  a  place  in  his  house- 
hold.1 

George  William's  subjects  did  not  appreciate  these 
frequent  absences  of  their  liege  lord,  nor  did  they  approve 
of  the  Italian  singers  and  dancers  and  the  Venetian  son 
whom  he  brought  back  with  him  to  his  prim  little  court. 
They  became  exceedingly  restive,  and  pointed  out  that 
there  was  need  of  a  duchess  and  an  heir.  Duke  Christian 
of  Celle  was  unwed,  and  Duke  George  William  of  Hanover, 
who  was  next  in  succession,  was  a  bachelor  too.  Their 
subjects,  both  of  Celle  and  Hanover,  considered  this  a 
neglect  of  duty  on  the  part  of  their  princes,  and,  remon- 
strances having  no  avail,  at  last  the  members  of  the  state 
in  Hanover  threatened  to  cut  short  George  William's 
allowance  if  he  did  not  marry  forthwith.  Moreover,  know- 
ing his  predilections,  they  intimated  plainly  that  they 
wished  no  foreign  bride,  and  suggested  that  the  Princess 
Sophia,  the  orphan  daughter  of  the  luckless  Frederick 
Prince"  Palatine,  ex-King  of  Bohemia  (by  the  beautiful 
Elizabeth,  daughter  of  James  I.  of  England),  would  be  a 
suitable  duchess. 

lOn  attaining  to  man's  estate,  this  youth  filled  the  office  of  Master  of 
the  Horse  at  the  court  of  Celle ;  later  he  became  a  colonel  of  the  dragoons. 
He  seems  to  have  been  of  a  jealous  disposition,  and  was  always  grumbling 
because  his  putative  father  did  not  do  more  for  him. 


4  THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

The  Princess  Sophia  was  well  past  her  first  youth,  and 
was  understood  to  be  anxious  to  settle  herself  in  life.  She 
was  then  living  with  her  brother,  the  Elector  Palatine  of 
the  Rhenish  provinces,  at  Heidelberg.  The  household  was 
not  a  happy  one,  for  the  Elector  and  his  wife  were  leading 
a  cat-and-dog  life,  and  Sophia's  lot,  as  a  poor  relative,  was 
hardly  enviable.  She  was  a  healthy  little  body,  decidedly 
good-looking,  though  she  had  not  inherited  the  beauty  of 
her  mother,  "  The  Queen  of  Hearts  ".  "  My  hair,"  she  writes, 
"  was  light  brown  and  in  natural  curls  ;  my  general  appear- 
ance gay  and  lightsome  ;  my  figure  good,  but  not  very  tall  ; 
my  deportment  that  of  a  princess.  I  take  no  pleasure  in 
remembering  all  the  rest,  of  which  my  mirror  shows  me 
nothing  left."  She  had  sharp  wits  and  a  sharp  tongue,  and 
the  life  she  had  led,  travelling  about  Europe  in  the  poverty- 
stricken  court  of  Queen  Elizabeth,  had  developed  both  to  an 
unusual  degree.  Yet  notwithstanding  the  financial  troubles 
of  her  youth,  "my  spirits,"  she  continues,  "were  so  high  in 
those  days  that  everything  amused  me  ;  the  misfortunes  of 
my  house  were  unable  to  depress  them,  although  at  times 
we  had  to  make  repasts  richer  than  Cleopatra's,  and  nothing 
was  eaten  at  court  but  pearls  and  diamonds  ".  This  is  one 
of  Sophia's  figures  of  speech,  for  it  is  to  be  feared  that  the 
pearls  and  diamonds  had  long  since  gone  to  the  Jews.  De- 
spite her  poverty,  or  perhaps  in  consequence  of  it,  Sophia 
was  inordinately  proud  of  her  birth,  especially  her  English 
ancestry,  on  which  she  was  never  tired  of  expatiating.  At 
one  time  she  had  been  put  forward  as  a  suitable  wife  for  her 
first  cousin,  the  Prince  of  Wales,  afterwards  Charles  II.  of 
England,  and  with  that  view  had  been  carefully  trained  in 
the  English  language  and  English  ways.  The  match  fell 
through,  and  so,  in  the  after  years,  did  many  others,  some 
good,  some  indifferent,  which  had  been  projected  for  her  by 
her  relations.  As  Sophia  was  very  ambitious,  the  failure  of 
her  matrimonial  chances  was  a  great  disappointment  to  her. 
She  was  now  twenty-nine,  and  her  good  looks  were  somewhat 
impaired  by  an  attack  of  small-pox  ;  she  was  therefore  quite 
ready  to  meet  the  husband  whom  the  Hanoverians  had  pro- 
t  posed  for  her,  half  way. 

George  William,  seeing  that  his  subjects'  minds  were 
made  up,  shrugged  his  shoulders  and  submitted  to  the 
inevitable.  If  it  had  to  be,  Sophia  would  do  as  well  as 


THE  ROMANCE  OF  THE  PRINCESS'S  PARENTAGE 


5 


any  other.  He  therefore  started  for  Heidelberg,  on  the 
way  to  his  beloved  Venice,  accompanied  again  by  his 
brother,  Ernest  Augustus.  Without  ado  he  proposed  for 
Sophia's  hand,  and  she  "  did  not  at  all  hesitate  to  say  Yes," 
as  she  admits  in  her  autobiography.  He  made  no  pretence 
to  any  affection,  and  she  required  none.  A  marriage  con- 
tract was  drawn  up  and  duly  signed,  with  the  single  proviso 
that  the  betrothal  should  not  be  made  public  for  a  little 
time. 

The  business  having  been  settled,  George  William 
hurried  on  to  Venice,  and  revelled  in  his  brief  spell  of 
freedom.  But  his  approaching  marriage  hung  over  him 
like  a  pall ;  he  thought  over  the  matter,  and  one  morning 
he  came  to  the  conclusion  that  after  all  he  could  not  take 
upon  himself  the  restraints  of  matrimony  with  a  woman  for 
whom  he  had  not  a  particle  of  affection.  The  situation  was 
difficult,  for,  if  he  did  not  wed  her,  his  subjects  were  deter- 
mined to  reduce  his  income,  and  to  the  pleasure-loving 
Duke  this  was  an  equally  unpleasant  alternative.  In  this 
dilemma  he  bethought  himself  of  Ernest  Augustus,  his 
youngest  brother,  and  suggested  to  him  that  he  should  act 
as  his  substitute.  All  that  his  subjects  wanted  was  an 
heir,  and  with  this  Ernest  Augustus  would  be  able  to 
furnish  them,  through  Sophia,  as  well  as  he.  Ernest 
Augustus  was  nothing  loth  to  take  his  brother's  place 
— for  a  consideration.  He  was  favourably  disposed  to- 
wards the  Princess,  with  whom  he  had  flirted  in  his  youth  ; 
they  had  met  at  the  Hague  and  had  played  the  guitar 
together,  but  as  he  was  a  younger  son,  Sophia  nipped  the 
flirtation  in  the  bud.  A  deed  was  drawn  up  between  the 
two  brothers,  in  which  George  William  undertook  to  sur- 
render certain  of  his  revenues,  and  bound  himself  not  to 
marry,  so  as  to  leave  his  inheritance  and  all  his  rights  to 
the  brother  who  would  act  as  substitute  for  him  in  the 
matter  of  his  intended  bride  and  ducal  obligations.  Just 
as  the  contract  was  signed  the  other  impecunious  brother, 
John  Frederick,  came  into  the  room,  and,  on  learning  its 
contents,  fell  into  a  rage  because  the  chance  had  not  been 
offered  to  him  first ;  he  tried  to  tear  away  the  document 
from  Ernest  Augustus,  George  William  looking  on  with 
amusement.  This  happy-go-lucky  way  of  choosing  a  bride 
was  quite  in  keeping  with  the  traditions  of  the  House  of 


6  THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

Brunswick  ;  an  ancestor  of  these  princes  cast  dice  with  his 
seven  brothers  for  a  wife  on  somewhat  similar  conditions, 
and  won  the  prize — a  princess  of  Hesse-Darmstadt. 

The  next  thing  was  to  acquaint  the  Princess  Sophia 
with  the  arrangement ;  that  lady,  having  satisfied  herself 
that  the  terms  of  the  agreement  were  equally  advantageous 
to  her  and  her  possible  heirs,  raised  no  objection  to  being 
handed  over  like  a  bale  of  goods,  and  though  her  pride  was 
hurt  she  skilfully  concealed  her  resentment.  Her  brother, 
the  Elector  Palatine,  glad  to  be  rid  of  her  and  her  sharp 
tongue,  told  her  that  he  thought  she  was  better  for  the 
change  of  brothers,  a  remark  with  which  she  agreed,  adding 
that  "  A  good  establishment  is  all  /  cared  for,  and  if  this 
be  secured  to  the  younger  brother,  the  change  is  a  matter 
of  indifference  ". 

These  negotiations  from  first  to  last  took  two  years  ;  in 
September,  1658,  the  marriage  was  celebrated  with  some 
pomp  at  Heidelberg,  and  in  November  the  Duchess  Sophia 
took  up  her  abode  at  Hanover,  where  she  was  the  first  lady 
in  the  land,  and  treated  with  every  honour.  She  was  always 
a  great  stickler  for  etiquette,  and  insisted  on  every  tittle  of  the 
respect  due  to  her  rank  and  illustrious  ancestry.  Curiously 
enough,  if  we  may  believe  her  memoirs,  no  sooner  was  she 
married  to  Ernest  Augustus  than  George  William  became 
attracted  to  her,  thereby  arousing  the  jealousy  of  her  husband, 
until  she  begged  the  elder  brother,  "  for  the  love  of  God,"  to 
leave  her  in  peace. 

In  1660  her  eldest  son,  George  Louis  (afterwards  George 
I.  of  England),  was  born  at  Osnabrlick,  and  the  arrival  of 
the  much-wished-for  heir  increased  her  importance.  The 
following  year  Ernest  Augustus  succeeded  to  the  bishopric 
of  Osnabriick,1  and  Sophia's  prospects  were  the  more  im- 
proved. 

Meantime  George  William  had  overcome  his  belated 
penchant  for  Sophia,  if  indeed  it  ever  existed  save  in  her 

1  Osnabriick  was  a  see  founded  by  Charlemagne.  Luther  had  many 
followers  among  the  citizens,  and  at  the  Treaty  of  Westphalia,  1648,  which 
was  concluded  at  Osnabriick,  it  was  arranged  that  the  Prince  Bishop  should 
be  alternately  a  Lutheran  and  a  Roman  Catholic,  the  selection  of  the  Lutheran 
bishop  being  left  with  the  chapter,  restricted,  however,  to  the  family  of  Bruns- 
wick-Luneburg.  This  arrangement  resulted  in  some  very  odd  bishops.  The 
last  member  of  the  English  Royal  Family  to  hold  the  title  was  Frederick 
Augustus  Duke  of  York,  son  of  George  III. 


THE  ROMANCE  OF  THE  PRINCESS'S  PARENTAGE    7 

imagination,  and  was  gratifying  his  pleasure-loving  soul  by 
making  a  tour  of  many  cities.  Among  others,  he  went  to 
Breda,  an  exceedingly  gay  place  at  the  end  of  the  seven- 
teenth century,  albeit  money  was  somewhat  lacking  there. 
It  was  the  chosen  home  of  political  refugees,  exiled  princes, 
and  deposed  monarchs,  who  kept  up  their  spirits  despite 
their  fallen  fortunes,  and  maintained  phantom  courts  on 
nothing  a  year.  Here  Charles  II.  dwelt  for  some  time  in 
his  exile  with  many  celebrated  cavaliers  ;  here,  too,  his 
aunt,  the  Queen  of  Bohemia,  had  held  her  shadowy  court ; 
here,  too,  was  concluded  the  peace  between  England  and 
Holland.  All  these  things  contributed  to  the  importance 
and  the  gaiety  of  Breda ;  there  were  feasts,  masquerades, 
and  revelries,  and  plays  with  after-suppers  and  dances. 
Among  the  gayest  of  the  gay  was  the  Princess  de  Tarente, 
an  aunt  of  the  Duchess  Sophia,  a  German  princess  who 
had  married  a  French  prince.  One  of  her  most  cherished 
protegees  was  Eleonore  d'Olbreuse,  only  child  of  the  Marquis 
d'Olbreuse,  a  nobleman  of  ancient  family,  of  Poitou.  He 
was  one  of  the  many  French  Huguenots  who,  after  the 
revocation  of  the  Edict  of  Nantes,  were  persecuted  by  the 
government  of  Louis  XIV.  As  he  would  not  recant,  his 
estates  were  confiscated,  he  was  sent  into  exile,  and  found 
an  asylum  in  Holland. 

Before  the  persecution  of  the  Huguenot  nobles  Eleonore 
d'Olbreuse  had  figured  at  the  brilliant  court  of  Louis  XIV., 
where  she  was  greatly  admired  for  her  wit  and  beauty. 
She  was  endowed  with  an  exquisite  figure,  dark  brown 
hair,  regular  features,  and  a  brilliant  complexion.  At  this 
time  she  was  in  the  first  bloom  of  youth,  and  her  loveliness 
was  only  equalled  by  her  sprightliness  and  charm  of  manner.1 
George  William  met  her  at  a  ball  at  the  Princess  de  Tarente's, 
and  being  of  an  amorous,  though  not  of  a  marrying  disposi- 
tion, he  fell  in  love  at  first  sight.  He  became  a  constant 
visitor  at  the  Princess  de  Tarente's,  and  a  closer  acquaint- 
ance with  the  accomplishments  and  graces  of  the  bewitching 
Eleonore  only  served  to  rivet  his  chains.  He  affected  a 
great  zeal  to  perfect  his  French,  and  the  fair  Eleonore 
willingly  consented  to  give  the  good-looking  Duke  lessons, 

1  There  is  a  portrait  of  her,  dressed  in  a  blue  robe,  in  the  Guelph  Gallery 
at  Herrenhausen,  as  she  was  in  middle  life — a  beautiful  woman,  with  masses 
of  dark  brown  hair  and  a  superb  figure. 


8  THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

thereby  offering  fine  opportunities  for  flirtation.  What 
progress  George  William  made  with  the  French  language 
is  not  recorded,  but  in  the  art  of  love  there  is  no  doubt  he 
made  rapid  advances,  for  after  a  few  lessons  in  the  conjuga- 
tion of  the  verb  aimer,  he  avowed  his  passion  in  most  ex- 
travagant terms,  and  swore  that  he  could  not  live  without 
her.  He  found  that  the  citadel  did  not  yield  to  the  first 
attack.  Eleonore  d'Olbreuse  was  of  a  very  different  calibre 
to  Signora  Buccolini ;  she  had  only  two  available  assets, 
her  beauty  and  her  virtue,  and  she  was  well  aware  of  the 
value  of  both.  She  was  not  versed  in  the  menue  galanterie 
of  the  court  of  the  Grand  Monarque  for  nothing.  George 
William  was  fervent  in  his  protestations,  prodigal  in  his 
promises  of  devotion,  and  what  was  more  to  the  purpose, 
most  liberal  in  his  proposals  as  to  settlements ;  but  Eleonore 
held  firm.  Her  birth  was  noble,  though  not  royal,  and, 
despite  her  poverty,  she  held  that  a  French  marquis  of 
ancient  descent  was  not  so  very  inferior  to  a  petty  German 
prince.  George  William  could  not  be  expected  to  take 
this  view,  for,  though  indifferent  to  the  trappings  of  rank, 
he,  like  all  German  princes,  was  inclined  to  over-estimate 
his  own  importance.  But  he  could  not  give  her  up  ;  he 
who  had  been  accustomed  to  command  in  love  was 
now  its  humblest  supplicant ;  he  who  was  indolent,  easy- 
going in  temperament,  now  developed  an  ardour  and  de- 
termination altogether  foreign  to  him  ;  he  who  was  slow 
of  speech  now  became  more  eloquent  in  the  language  of 
love.  Eleonore  had  worked  a  transformation.  So  infatu- 
ated was  he  that  he  would  willingly  have  married  her 
then  and  there  but  for  the  document  he  had  signed  when 
the  marriage  was  arranged  between  Ernest  Augustus  and 
Sophia.  Eleonore  knew  nothing  of  this  arrangement,  but 
she  positively  refused  to  entertain  any  proposals  short  of 
marriage. 

In  this  dilemma  George  William  thought  of  a  morga- 
natic marriage,1  and  offered  handsome  settlements.  The 
Princess  de  Tarente  advised  her  friend  to  yield.  The 
Marquis  d'Olbreuse  put  no  pressure  on  his  daughter ;  but 
she  was  well  aware  of  the  straits  to  which  poverty  had 

1 A  marriage  ad  morganaticum ,  sanctioned  by  the  Church,  but  so  far  dis- 
allowed by  law  that  the  children  of  such  wedlock  were  infantes  nullius,  and 
could  succeed  to  no  inheritance. 


EL^ONORE    n'OLBREUSE,    DUCHESS   OF    CELLE, 

From  a  painting  at  Herrenhaustn. 


THE  ROMANCE  OF  THE  PRINCESS'S  PARENTAGE    9 

reduced  him,  and  could  see  that  in  his  heart  he  favoured 
the  Duke's  suit.  If  she  consented  she  would  secure  for 
her  father  a  comfortable  provision  for  his  declining  years. 
Eleonore,  too,  was  really  in  love  with  George  William  ; 
but  still  she  held  back. 

To  bring  matters  to  a  climax,  the  Princess  de  Tarente 
gave  a  brilliant  entertainment  in  honour  of  the  birthday  of 
her  friend  and  protegee,  when  she  presented  her  with  a 
jewelled  medallion  of  her  lover.  The  result  seemed  inevit- 
able, for  she  who  hesitates  is  lost ;  when  suddenly  couriers 
came  hot-foot  from  Celle  with  the  news  that  George  William's 
elder  brother,  Christian,  was  dead,  and  his  younger  brother, 
John  Frederick,  who  owed  him  a  grudge  for  having  been 
cheated  out  of  Sophia,  had  seized  on  the  castle  of  Celle  and 
established  himself  in  the  duchy.  George  William  had  to 
post  in  haste  to  Celle  to  uphold  his  rights  and  turn  out 
the  usurper,  but  before  leaving  Breda  he  placed  a  paper 
in  the  hands  of  his  beloved  Eleonore,  in  which  she  found 
that  he  had  settled  on  her,  in  the  event  of  his  death,  the 
whole  of  his  private  fortune  with  the  exception  of  a  few 
legacies. 

It  took  some  time  for  George  William  to  arrange 
things  satisfactorily  at  Celle ;  but  at  last  he  persuaded 
John  Frederick  to  relinquish  the  duchy,  and  gave  him 
compensation,  for  his  frequent  absences  had  weakened  his 
rights.  George  William  then  became  Duke  of  Celle,  and 
John  Frederick  succeeded  to  Hanover,  Ernest  Augustus 
remaining  Bishop  of  Osnabriick. 

WThen  affairs  of  state  were  settled  satisfactorily  George 
William's  thoughts  once  more  turned  to  love.  But  there 
were  many  difficulties.  He  could  not  leave  his  duchy  so 
soon  again,  he  could  not  return  to  Breda  to  see  the  object 
of  his  affections  ;  while  she,  on  her  part,  refused  all  en- 
treaties to  come  to  him.  In  this  dilemma  he  confided  in 
his  sister-in-law,  the  Duchess  Sophia,  of  whose  judgment 
he  had  great  admiration.  Sophia  sympathised,  softened, 
doubtless,  by  one  of  those  little  presents  whereby  George 
William  was  in  the  habit  of  buying  the  complaisance  of  the 
court  at  Osnabriick,  and  promised  to  see  the  affair  through, 
provided  that  nothing  were  done  to  impair  her  rights.  It 
could  hardly  have  been  a  congenial  task  to  Sophia,  arid  her 
jealousy  showed  itself  early  by  her  scoffing  at  Eleonore's 


io          THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

airs  of  virtue,  which  she  declared  were  only  assumed  to- 
increase  her  value.  But  she  was  not  one  to  allow  senti- 
ment to  stand  in  the  way  of  substantial  benefit.  Sophia's 
prospects  had  again  distinctly  improved  by  the  death  of 
Duke  Christian.  John  Frederick  was  still  unwed,  and 
likely  to  remain  so  ; l  and  if  she  could  tie  George  William 
down  to  an  amour  without  legitimate  heirs,  in  the  fulness 
of  time  she  or  her  children  might  reign  not  only  at  Osna- 
briick,  but  also  at  Hanover  and  Celle.  So  the  illustrious 
Duchess  Sophia,  the  descendant  of  kings,  the  great  lady 
of  Osnabriick,  wrote  a  specious  letter  to  the  poor  exiled 
Eleonore,  asking  her  to  come,  assuring  her  of  respect,  and 
offering  her  as  a  pretext  the  post  of  lady-in-waiting  at  her 
court.  Eleonore  still  hesitated.  She  was  very  proud  and 
very  poor ;  but  she  was  very  much  in  love,  and  wearied 
with  importunities.  The  Duchess  wrote  again,  even  more 
urgently.  These  attentions  from  one  who  was  known 
everywhere  as  a  great  princess  flattered  Eleonore's  pride, 
and  the  prospect  of  joining  her  lover  gratified  her  love. 
She  consented  and  came. 

Eleonore  was  received  with  every  mark  of  respect. 
Sophia,  accompanied  by  George  William,  met  her  at  the 
foot  of  the  grand  staircase  of  the  castle.  She  was  led  up  to 
the  Duchess's  own  chamber,  where  coffee  and  salt  biscuits,, 
an  unusual  honour,  were  offered  her,  and  she  was  then  con- 
ducted to  her  apartments.  No  one  could  be  more  affable 
than  the  Duchess  ;  everything  seemed  straightforward,  and 
it  is  no  wonder  that  Eleonore,  a  stranger  in  a  strange  landr 
was  outwitted.  She  soon  found  that  she  could  not  draw 
back  without  compromising  her  reputation,  so  she  yielded 
to  advice,  not  altogether  reluctantly,  and  accepted  at  last 
the  left-handed  marriage  offered  her.  A  contract  was  drawn 
up,  worded  almost  as  if  it  were  a  regular  marriage  ;  but 
carefully  guarding  the  rights  of  Sophia,  her  husband,  and 
her  children;  and  \  the  signatures  of  Ernest  Augustus  and 
Sophia  were  written  under  those  of  George  William  of  Celle 
and  Eleonore  d'Olbreuse.  After  the  ceremony,  which  took 
place  in  September,  1665,  Eleonore  was  granted  the  title  of 
Madame  von  Harburg,  so  called  from  an  estate  of  the  Duke's, 
and  her  nominal  place  of  lady-in-waiting  was  filled  by  her 

1  He  married  later,  1668,  but  his  wife  brought  him  no  children. 


THE  ROMANCE  OF  THE  PRINCESS'S  PARENTAGE    n 

sister  Angelica,  whom  she  later  married  to  the  Comte  de 
Reuss. 

In  her  memoirs  Sophia  declares  that  at  first  she  was 
agreeably  surprised  to  find  Eleonore  a  very  amiable  person, 
of  modest  and  even  retiring  manners,  and  she  no  doubt 
thought  she  would  be  easily  kept  in  her  place — not  a  high 
one.  She  soon  found  herself  mistaken.  For  some  months 
after  the  morganatic  marriage — the  anti-contrat  de  mariage 
Sophia  contemptuously  called  it — Eleonore  continued  to 
live  in  the  household  of  the  Duchess,  and  was  not  treated 
with  any  great  honour,  and  certainly  not  admitted  to  an 
equality  of  rank.  For  instance,  at  meal-times  she  did  not 
take  her  place  at  the  ducal  table,  and  had  to  sit  on  a  low 
chair,  without  anything  to  eat,  at  a  respectful  distance  from 
Sophia  and  George  William  and  Ernest  Augustus,  who  ate 
their  food  while  Madame  von  Harburg  looked  on.  But  she 
was  allowed  to  remain  seated  when  any  princes  were  present, 
and  this  was  considered  a  great  concession.  Her  pride  was 
much  hurt  at  this  etiquette,  nor  did  the  heavy  living  and 
coarse  manners  of  the  German  court  appeal  to  her  finer 
tastes.  In  her  interesting  letters  to  her  uncle  she  complains 
that  "  her  heart  was  sadly  turned  "  by  the  enormous  dishes 
brought  before  the  princely  eaters,  their  menu  consisting 
chiefly  of  greasy  sausages  thrown  in  lumps  on  red  cabbage, 
and  a  farinaceous  mass  of  ginger  and  onions.  This  was 
washed  down  by  cloudy,  heavy  ale,  of  which  they  drank 
freely.  "  Now,"  the  Duchess  Sophia  would  exclaim  after 
she  had  eaten  her  fill,  mopping  her  face  with  a  napkin, 
"  you  may  go,  my  dear,  and  help  your  '  angelic '  sister  with 
her  saucepans."  This  was  a  jeer  at  the  habit  of  Eleonore 
and  Angelica  preparing  for  themselves  a  little  meal  after 
the  French  cuisine  in  their  dressing-rooms. 

Madame  von  Harburg  was  not  stinted  in  her  establish- 
ment ;  she  was  allowed  a  chariot  drawn  by  six  horses,  but 
she  was  never  seen  abroad  with  the  Duchess  Sophia  or  the 
Bishop  of  Osnabriick.  She  was  not,  however,  a  lady  content 
with  the  second  place,  and  as  her  influence  with  her  husband 
was  great,  and  grew  greater  as  his  love  increased,  she  had 
little  difficulty  in  persuading  him  to  take  her  away  with 
him  to  the  schloss  at  Celle,  where  she  was  safe  from  the 
patronage  of  the  Duchess  Sophia  and  could  develop  on  her 
own  lines.  Geogre  William  was  glad  to  take  up  his  abode 


12    THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

at  the  capital  of  his  duchy,  and,  thanks  to  his  morganatic 
wife,  he  abandoned  his  roving  habits  and  settled  down  as  a 
model  duke,  making  plans  for  the  improvement  of  his  castle 
and  the  better  government  of  his  people. 

After  they  had  been  a  few  months  at  Celle,  Eleonore 
set  the  seal  on  her  influence  with  her  husband  by  presenting 
him  with  a  daughter — Sophie  Dorothea. 


CHAPTER  II. 

THE  PROGRESS  OF  ELE"ONORE. 
(1666-1676.) 

Oh,  were  I  seated  high  as  my  ambition, 

I'd  place  this  naked  foot  on  necks  of  monarchs ! 

WALPOLE. 

SOPHIE  DOROTHEA  was  born  in  the  castle  of  Celle  on- 
September  15,  1666.  On  the  anniversary  of  her  birth  two 
hundred  and  thirty-two  years  later  it  chanced  that  the 
writer  visited  Celle.  It  must  have  been  on  just  such  a 
September  morning  that  Sophie  Dorothea  was  born,  with 
the  sun  blazing  down  on  the  yellow-washed  walls  and 
shining  into  the  chamber  where  the  birth-bed  was,  with  the 
limes  and  silver  beeches  in  the  garden  flecked  with  the  gold 
of  autumn,  and  the  blue-green  reeds  waving  on  the  edge  of 
the  sluggish  moat.  The  fine  old  schloss  had  changed  little 
with  the  flight  of  centuries.  The  drawbridge  and  portcullis 
had  gone  ;  but  the  moat,  filled  with  water  from  the  Aller, 
still  flowed  dully  about  the  walls,  separated  from  them  only 
by  a  strip  of  garden.  The  great  courtyard,  with  its  high 
yellow  walls,  timeworn  sundial,  and  pyramid  of  cannon- 
balls  in  one  corner  (doubtless  the  spoil  of  one  of  George 
William's  many  campaigns),  even  the  flock  of  white  and 
purple  pigeons  fluttering  down  on  the  rough  stones,  all 
seemed  to  breathe  the  spirit  of  the  seventeenth  century. 
And  looking  up  at  the  north  wing,  where  Sophie  Dorothea 
was  born,  it  required  little  effort  of  the  imagination  to- 
people  again  the  deserted  courtyard  with  lackeys  and 
squires,  to  conjure  up  the  clatter  of  hoofs  and  the  clank  of 
spurs,  the  bustle  of  congratulation,  the  arrival  and  departure 
of  messengers  and  doctors,  all  of  which  signified  to  the  little 
town  of  Celle  that  a  daughter  was  born  to  the  head  of  the 
great  House  of  Brunswick  -  Liineburg,  and,  though  they 
knew  it  not,  an  ancestress  to  two  of  the  mightiest  monarchs 

1.3 


1 4    THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

of  the  modern  world — the  King  of  England  and  the  German 
Emperor.1 

The  little  town  of  Celle,  at  least  that  part  of  it  which 
clusters  around  the  base  of  the  castle's  mighty  walls,  has 
also  changed  little  since  the  days  of  Sophie  Dorothea.  The 
old  brick  church  where  the  babe  of  that  bright  morning  now 
sleeps  with  her  fathers  remains  the  same.  The  triangular 
market-place  and  the  quaint  little  streets  which  branch  off 
from  it,  many  of  them  narrow  and  irregular,  bear  the  marks 
of  the  flight  of  centuries.  The  old  part  of  the  town  still 
stands  with  houses  dated  from  1600  to  1700,  having  outer 
beams  carved  with  curious  and  uncouth  mottoes.  Celle, 
though  a  fairly  prosperous  town,  has  not  shot  ahead  like 
Hanover.  But  in  those  days  Celle,  with  its  magnificent 
schloss,  the  seat  of  the  elder  brother's  duchy,  was  a  place  of 
considerable  importance.  It  was  a  veritable  Naboth's  vine- 
yard to  Ernest  Augustus  and  Sophia,  his  spouse,  who,  from 
their  little  court  at  Osnabriick,  looked  towards  it  with 
longing  eyes. 

The  news  of  the  birth  of  a  daughter  was  not  welcome  to  « 
them,  but  they  consoled  themselves  with  the  thought  that 
the  child  was  the  fruit  of  a  morganatic  union,  and,  after 
they  had  cracked  a  few  coarse  jokes,  dismissed  the  subject 
from  their  minds.  But  they  were  soon  reminded  rather 
rudely.  The  infant  was  given  the  names  of  Sophie  Dorothea, 
and  the  christening  was  celebrated  with  much  ceremony  and 
many  festivities  and  rejoicings.  Ernest  Augustus  angrily 


1  Short  genealogical  table  showing  descent  of  King  Edward  VII.  and  the 
Emperor  William  II.  from  SOPHIE  DOROTHEA  of  Celle. 

SOPHIE  DOROTHEA, 
married  her  first  cousin,  George  Louis  (afterwards  George  I.) ;  they  had  two  children — viz. 


George  II. 
Frederick  Prince  of  Wales. 
George  III. 

The  Duke  of  Kent. 
1 
Queen  Victoria. 

Edward  VII. 

The  Queen  of  Prussia. 

Frederick 
the  Great. 

Prince  William  Augustus. 

Frederick  William  II. 
1 
Frederick  William  III. 

Emperor  William  I. 

Emperor  Frederick. 
Emperor  William  II. 


THE  PROGRESS  OF  ELEONORE  15 

remarked  that  if  the  infant  had  been  a  princess  instead  of 
only  the  daughter  of  his  brother's  madame,  they  could  not 
have  made  more  fuss  about  it ;  and  that  was  true,  for, 
from  the  first  moment  Sophie  Dorothea  drew  breath, 
though  in  strict  law  she  was  a  person  of  no  importance, 
expressly  excluded  from  holding  any  rank  at  Celle,  the 
same  honours  were  paid  to  her  as  if  she  had  been  heiress 
to  the  duchy. 

From  this  time  onward  the  rift  between  the  Duchess 
Sophia  and  Eleonore  gradually  widened  into  an  open  feud. 
As  long  as  she  had  to  think  only  of  herself  Eleonore  had 
borne  patiently  Sophia's  insults  and  humiliations  ;  but  now 
that  a  child  was  born,  she  determined  to  spare  no  effort 
to  raise  herself  and  her  daughter  to  a  recognised  position. 
She  played  her  part  with  consummate  skill.  She  had  to 
fight  against  not  merely  the  uncompromising  hostility  of 
Ernest  Augustus  and  the  jealous  hatred  of  his  Duchess, 
but  the  forces  of  custom  and  precedence  which  bind  the 
petty  German  courts  with  an  iron  band.  She  had  to  beat 
down  the  jealousy  and  prejudice  against  herself  as  an 
alien  and  a  stranger,  and  win  the  support  and  recog- 
nition not  only  of  her  husband's  subjects,  but  of  the 
neighbouring  princes,  and  even  of  the  Emperor  himself. 
When  we  consider  the  forces  against  her,  we  are  lost 
in  admiration  of  the  courage,  patience,  and  sagacity  of 
this  woman,  who  year  after  year  toiled  for  the  end  she 
had  in  view,-  and  at  last  found  her  efforts  crowned  with 
success. 

Success  did  not  come  in  a  night.  It  took  Eleonore  ten 
years  before  she  obtained  the  object  of  her  desire — ten 
years  of  constant  effort ;  for  her  arch-enemy  and  rival,  the 
Duchess  Sophia,  was  ever  on  the  alert  to  check  her  moves 
and  foil  her  plans.  One  great  advantage  Eleonore  had  at 
this  time,  she  was  sure  of  her  husband's  love  ;  and  as  George 
William  was  as  easy-going  as  his  wife  was  energetic,  and  as 
•contented  as  she  was  ambitious,  she  soon  managed  to  gain 
.a  mastery  over  him — the  mastery  of  a  strong  mind  over  a 
weak  one.  Her  next  duty  was  to  cultivate  the  arts  of 
popularity  and  win  the  good-will  of  her  husband's  subjects, 
no  easy  matter,  for  the  prejudice  against  "  the  French- 
woman "  and  morganatic  wife  was  strong  in  the  little 
German  principality.  But  her  tact  and  affability  soon  won 


1 6          THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

her  golden  opinions  in  Celle.  From  the  first  she  seemed 
to  take  the  townsfolk  into  her  confidence  ;  she  drove  about 
the  town  with  her  infant  daughter,  radiant  with  bows  and 
smiles,  and  soon  the  inhabitants  began  to  regard  the  little 
one  as  their  own  child,  and  to  be  as  jealous  of  her  rights  as 
they  were  of  their  own.  This  devotion  of  the  honest  towns- 
folk of  Celle  to  Sophie  Dorothea  never  wavered,  but  lasted 
all  through  her  life. 

Not  content  with  sowing  the  seeds  of  her  child's  popu- 
larity in  her  infancy,  Eleonore  used  other  means  to  endear 
herself  to  her  husband's  subjects.  At  her  instigation  Duke 
George  William  proceeded  to  restore  the  old  schloss  on  a 
scale  of  considerable  magnificence,  taking  care  always  to 
employ  local  workmen.  The  little  theatre l  in  the  castle, 
so  long  unused,  was  opened  again  for  plays  and  musical 
performances,  and  to  these  entertainments  gentle  and  simple 
were  bidden,  and  seated  according  to  their  rank.  Thus, 
after  many  years,  a  lady  was  once  more  chatelaine  at  the 
schloss  of  Celle,  and  again  there  might  be  said  to  be  a  court 
there. 

George  William  warmly  seconded  all  these  effort  of  his 
wife,  and  so  great  was  his  love  for  her  and  the  little  child 
that  his  one  idea  seemed  to  be  how  best  to  advance  their 
interests.  The  rival  court  of  Osnabriick,  queened  over  by 
the  descendant  of  kings,  regarded  all  these  innovations 
and  the  "  mock  court "  at  Celle  with  open  ridicule  yet 
concealed  uneasiness.  Sophia  was  presenting  her  hus- 
band with  a  numerous  family,  and  she  was  anxious  that 

JThe  theatre  is  in  the  old  part  of  the  castle  at  Celle,  approached  by 
vaulted,  stone  corridors,  with  walls  five  feet  thick,  and  has  a  large  stage  and 
a  number  of  little  boxes,  the  Royal  box  of  course  occupying  a  position  of 
prominence.  The  decorations  are  simple  ;  most  of  the  theatre  is  whitewashed. 
Like  the  rest  of  the  castle  of  Celle,  it  has  changed  little,  though  the  castle 
has  witnessed  many  changes.  On  the  death  of  George  William,  the  castle 
passed  into  the  possession  of  George  III.,  and  through  him  to  successive 
kings  of  England.  On  the  accession  of  Queen  Victoria,  the  schloss  became 
the  property  of  the  King  of  Hanover,  Ernest  Augustus  (Duke  of  Cumberland), 
who  altered  it  somewhat  inside,  not  for  the  better,  and  it  remained  in  the 
•possession  of  the  Royal  Family  of  Hanover  until  the  Revolution  of  1866, 
when  it  was  seized,  together  with  other  Hanoverian  possessions,  by  Prussia, 
and  merged  into  the  Province  of  Brunswick.  For  some  time  it  was  used  as 
one  of  the  summer  palaces  of  the  present  Prince  Regent  of  Brunswick  ;  but 
he  rarely  goes  there  now,  and  the  schloss  is  almost  dismantled  of  furniture, 
but  well  kept  and  in  perfect  order. 


THE  PROGRESS  OF  ELEONORE  17 

nothing  should  be  done  to  prejudice  the  rights  of  her 
offspring.1 

Ernest  Augustus  held  the  security  of  his  brother's 
promise  not  to  enter  into  a  legal  marriage,  and  believed  in 
it  implicitly  ;  but  he  naturally  asked  himself  to  what  end 
Eleonore  was  working.  He  heard  much  of  George  William's 
boundless  generosity  to  his  morganatic  wife,  and  he  liked  not 
the  diversion  of  his  private  property  from  what  he  thought 
its  proper  direction,  to  wit,  himself. 

Within  the  next  few  years  Eleonore  bore  her  husband 
three  more  daughters,  but  they  all  died  in  infancy.  Her  hope 
of  an  heir,  long  cherished,  despite  the  bitter  derision  of  her 
enemies,  came  to  nothing,  and  Sophie  Dorothea  remained 
the  spoiled  darling  of  her  parents'  affections.  So  devoted 
was  her  father  to  the  child  that  the  mother's  influence 
grew  day  by  day  ;  and  when  the  little  girl  was  five  years 
old,  George  William,  knowing  that  by  his  thoughtless  con- 
tract with  Ernest  Augustus  he  had  shut  out  his  wife  and 
daughter  from  all  succession  to  his  dominions,  began  to 
purchase  land  to  bequeath  as  he  pleased.  To  this  end  he 
bought  five  domains,  and  settled  them  upon  Eleonore  and 
Sophie  Dorothea,  so  as  to  make  provision  for  them  in  case 
of  his  death.  But  even  this  reasonable  arrangement  was 
not  carried  through  without  a  bribe  to  satisfy  Ernest 
Augustus,  who  would  only  tolerate  his  brother's  liberality 
to  his  wife  and  daughter  on  the  understanding  that  he 
received  a  handsome  commission  for  himself.  This  was 
the  first  marked  step  in  the  progress  of  Eleonore,  and  a 
little  later  she  sounded  the  Emperor  Leopold  I.  about  the 
possibility  of  legitimising  Sophie  Dorothea.  The  Emperor 

1  Table  showing  descent  of  Sophia  from  James  I.  of  England,  and  her 
children. 

James  I. 

Queen  of  Bohemia. 

Sophia,  m.  Ernest  Augustus  (afterward 
Elector  of  Hanover). 


1 

1 

| 

1 

I                    | 

1 

George  Louis, 

Frederick 

Maximilian   Sophia 

Charles    Christian, 

,    Ernest 

b.  1660,  d.  1727 

Augustus, 

William, 

Charlotte 

Philip,      b.  1671, 

Augustus 

(afterward 

b. 

1661, 

b.  :666, 

(Electress  of 

b.  1669,    d.  1703. 

Duke  of  York, 

George  I.  of 

d. 

1691. 

d.  1726. 

Brandenburg 

d.  1690. 

b.  1674, 

England),  m. 

and  first  Queen 

d.  1728. 

Sophie 

of  Prussia), 

Dorothea  of 

b.  1668,  d.  1705. 

Celle. 

1 8    THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

returned  a  favourable,  if  somewhat  guarded,  reply  ;  it  was 
evident  she  could  obtain  her  heart's  desire  if  she  could 
manage  to  pay  the  price.  We  find  her,  therefore,  instigat- 
ing George  William  to  send  troops  to  help  the  Emperor  in 
sundry  campaigns.  This  was  done,  and  George  William  so 
distinguished  himself  that  the  Emperor  received  him  in 
private  audience,  and  most  graciously  inquired  after  his 
"Duchess,"  pretending  not  to  know  the  true  state  of  affairs. 
The  Emperor's  condescension  reached  the  ears  of  the 
Duchess  Sophia,  and  the  embers  of  her  jealousy  burst  into 
a  blaze.  Eleonore's  conduct  was  a  model  of  wifely  devo- 
tion ;  so,  as  the  Duchess  Sophia  could  not  bring  any  charge 
against  her  after  her  marriage,  she  raked  up  some  old 
slander,  and  accused  her  publicly  of  having  simultaneously 
carried  on  two  intrigues  when  she  was  at  the  court  of  France. 
She  represented  her  as  a  designing  adventuress,  who,  while 
doing  her  best  to  marry  Colin,  a  page-in-waiting  of  Elizabeth 
Charlotte  Duchess  of  Orleans,  tried  to  catch  George  William 
as  the  bigger  match  of  the  two.  These  charges  were  not 
very  damaging  or  convincing,  but  malice  went  further.  We 
find  the  Duchess  Sophia  writing  to  her  niece,  the  Duchess 
of  Orleans  :  "  Never  would  any  respectable  girl  have  entered 
the  house  of  the  Princess  de  Tarente,  for,  though  she  is  my 
aunt — to  my  intense  disgust — she  is  not  a  person  with 
whom  any  one  can  live  and  remain  clean.  However,"  she 
added,  "d'Olbreuse  being  a  nobody,  it  did  not  matter 
much."  George  William  treated  the  tale  about  the  intrigue 
with  the  contempt  it  deserved,  but  the  statement  that  his 
wife  was  "  a  nobody  "  seems  to  have  rankled  ;  so  he  and 
his  lady  thought  of  a  very  poor  means  of  defence.  They 
paid  two  thousand  thalers  to  a  French  genealogist  to  make 
out  an  elaborate  family  tree,  to  prove  that  Eleonore 
d'Olbreuse  was  descended  in  an  almost  direct  line  from 
the  kings  of  France.  The  Duchess  Sophia  received  the 
pedigree  with  scorn  and  derision,  and  transmitted  it  to  the 
Duchess  of  Orleans,  who,  being  malicious  and  a  wit,  made 
out  a  caricature,  'in  which  she  clearly  showed  that  her  head 
cook  was  a  descendant  of  Philip  the  Bold.  Naturally  these 
tactics  did  not  tend  to  smooth  matters  between  Sophia  and 
Eleonore,  who  were  now  not  on  speaking  terms,  nor  were 
they  successful  in  winning  George  William  from  the  object 
of  his  affections.  Manlike,  the  more  his  wife  was  attacked 


THE  PROGRESS  OF  ELEONORE  19 

the  more  he  defended  her  ;  and  Eleonore,  who  had  her  share 
of  vanity,  was  so  upset  and  wounded  by  being  thus  flouted 
that  she  became  quite  ill,  and  had  to  take  a  cure  at  Pyrmont, 
then  a  fashionable  watering-place,  to  restore  her  health. 
George  William  was  worried,  too,  and  by  way  of  a  consola- 
tion he  purchased  for  Eleonore  another  and  yet  more 
valuable  estate,  including  the  fertile  island  of  Wilhelmsburg, 
in  the  Elbe,  near  Hamburg.  This  he  settled  upon  her  for 
life,  and  made  arrangements  for  it  to  become,  after  her 
death,  the  inheritance  of  Sophie  Dorothea.  Again  Ernest 
Augustus  protested,  and  again  he  was  bought  off,  this  time 
with  a  bribe  of  eighteen  thousand  thalers.  But  all  the 
same,  the  victory  remained  with  Eleonore.  If  she  could 
not  get  the  genealogy,  at  least  she  had  substantial  consola- 
tion. The  possession  of  a  property  like  the  island  of 
Wilhelmsburg  naturally  aroused  comment,  not  only  at 
Osnabriick,  but  the  neighbouring  courts.  It  was  regarded 
as  open  evidence  of  Eleonore's  influence ;  she  became  a 
person  of  consequence  outside  the  little  circle  of  Celle,  and 
all  the  German  princes  began  to  wonder  what  would  happen 
next. 

They  were  not  left  long  in  doubt.  A  few  months  later 
the  Emperor  Leopold  sent  to  the  court  of  Celle  the  letters 
patent  which  granted  the  legitimising  of  Sophie  Dorothea, 
and  gave  the  title  of  Countess  of  Wilhelmsburg  to  Eleonore. 
If  the  memoirs  of  the  time  are  to  be  believed,  this  Imperial 
message  came  as  a  surprise  even  to  George  William,  who, 
though  evidently  pleased,  looked  askance  at  his  Eleonore 
and  grunted,  "  Hum,  hum  ! "  as  though  he  fathomed  the 
source  whence  the  Imperial  condescension  sprang.  He 
was  right,  for  the  support  which  Eleonore  had  given  to  the 
Emperor  in  influencing  her  husband  to  send  troops  to  the 
campaign,  and  a  charming  letter  she  had  written  to  him, 
had  won  the  Emperor  over  to  her  side,  and  he  graciously 
acceded  to  her  desire. 

The  next  few  years  went  by  uneventfully.  It  seemed 
to  the  outside  world  that  Eleonore  was  resting  on  her 
laurels,  but  in  reality  she  was  working  for  more.  Meanwhile 
Sophie  Dorothea  was  growing  up  a  lovely  child,  petted  and 
spoiled  by  her  parents  and  the  court  of  Celle.  There  is  a 
picture  of  her,  painted  about  this  time,  at  Herrenhausen, 
the  portrait  of  a  beautiful  child  crowned  with  flowers  and 


20    THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

holding  a  great  bundle  of  blossoms  in  her  arms — a  happy, 
winsome,  radiant  face ;  and,  making  allowance  for  the 
flattery  of  court  painters,  it  is  certain  that  she  must  have 
been  exceptionally  lovely.  The  knowledge  that  the  little 
girl  was  to  inherit  a  large  fortune  made  rumour  already 
begin  to  find  her  a  husband  among  the  scions  of  the 
nobility.  Among  Sophie  Dorothea's  playmates  in  the 
gardens  of  Celle  was  a  handsome  youth  of  some  sixteen 
years,  Count  Philip  Christopher  Konigsmarck,  son  of  a 
wealthy  Swedish  noble.  The  youthful  Konigsmarck  was 
receiving  his  military  training  at  Celle,  and  was  staying 
there  for  a  few  years.  It  was  not  unusual  at  that  time  for 
a  soldier  to  be  trained  in  different  courts  and  serve  in 
various  campaigns,  and  so  acquire  a  thorough  knowledge 
of  warfare.  Count  Philip  came  of  a  family  with  a  brilliant 
military  record.  His  father  had  held  the  office  of  Minister- 
General  of  Artillery  in  the  service  of  the  King  of  Sweden  ; 
his  uncle,  Count  Otho  William,  was  a  marshal  in  the  service 
of  Louis  XIV.,  and  at  the  court  of  the  Grand  Monarque 
became  acquainted  with  Eleonore  d'Olbreuse.  He  was  a 
Huguenot  like  herself.  This  acquaintance  probably  formed 
the  link  which  brought  his  nephew  to  Celle.  Eleonore, 
though  popular  among  her  husband's  subjects,  was  devoted 
to  the  land  of  her  birth  ;  she  was  always  "  the  French- 
woman," and  was  fond  of  appointing  her  compatriots  to  little 
places  in  her  husband's  court,  thereby  causing  some  small 
jealousies. 

There  is  little  doubt  that  the  boy  and  girl  were  thrown 
together,  and  a  friendship  sprang  up  between  them  ;  but  at 
Sophie  Dorothea's  age  we  can  hardly  suppose  that  there 
was  any  deeper  affection,  though  Konigsmarck,  for  his  part 
(and  he  was  older),  afterwards  avowed  that  he  had  loved 
her  from  childhood.1  At  the  most  they  could  only  have 
been  boy  and  girl  playing  at  lovers.  Count  Philip,  as  we 
have  seen,  came  of  a  distinguished  family,  even  in  his 
boyhood  he  was  endowed  with  great  personal  beauty,  and 
he  was  known  to  be  heir  to  considerable  wealth.  Sophie 
Dorothea  was  an  heiress  too,  and  she  was  then  far  removed 
from  the  rank  of  a  princess.  The  possibility  of  a  match 
between  the  two  was  not  so  remote  as  might  have  been 

1  The  authority  for  this  statement  is  to  be  found  in  the  Protocol  of  the 
trial  of  Knesebeck,  published  in  Cramer's  Memoirs  of  Aurora  Konigsmarck. 


THE  PROGRESS  OF  ELEONORE  21 

imagined— at  any  rate  their  names  were  linked  together 
even  at  that  early  period  in  the  little  court  of  Celle. 

It  is  scarcely.likely  that  Eleonore,  Countess  of  Wilhelms- 
burg,  shared  these  views  for  her  daughter — in  fact,  we  know 
that  she  looked  higher.  Among  the  neighbouring  German 
princes  who  had  watched  with  benevolent  interest  the 
progress  of  Eleonore  was  Duke  Antony  Ulrich  of  Wolfen- 
biittel,1  a  cousin  of  George  William,  who  later  became  co- 
regent  with  his  brother,  Rudolph  Augustus,  of  the  duchy  of 
Brunswick- Wolfenbuttel.  He  was  a  prince  of  considerable 
talents  and  artistic  and  literary  gifts,  a  restless  spirit  always 
intriguing.  He  was  a  plain  man,  so  plain  that  the  Duchess 
of  Orleans  called  him  "  an  ugly  baboon  ".  He  early  noted 
the  great  influence  Eleonore  had  obtained  over  her  slow, 
easy-going  husband.  He  disliked  the  Bishop  of  Osnabrlick 
and  he  knew  of  the  Duchess  Sophia's  hatred  of  Ele"onore. 
He  was  aware  of  the  arrangement  that  had  been  made 
between  the  two  brothers  as  to  the  succession  to  the  duchy, 
but  nevertheless  he  thought  it  would  be  a  good  thing  if  he 
could  manage  to  divert  some  of  the  wealth  of  the  fat  little 
principality  of  Celle  into  his  somewhat  empty  coffers.  With 
this  end  in  view  he  paid  a  visit  to  the  court  of  Celle,  and 
treated  Eleonore  with  every  possible  respect ;  in  fact,  he 
seems  to  have  been  genuinely  impressed  with  her  virtue  and 
talents,  and  this  homage,  coming  from  a  neighbouring 
prince,  was  grateful  to  Eleonore's  self-esteem,  for  she  was 
sensitive  about  her  somewhat  equivocal  position.  She 
recognised  in  him  an  ally,  and  laid  the  foundations  of  a 
friendship  which  lasted  through  life. 

After  an  interval,  Duke  Antony  Ulrich  came  again  to 
Celle,  this  time  accompanied  by  his  eldest  son,  Augustus 
Frederick.  He  communicated  to  Eleonore  his  wishes  that 
his  son  should  be  betrothed  to  Sophie  Dorothea,  and  she 
was  nothing  loth.  But  he  pointed  out  that  there  was  a 
difficulty,  in  that  Sophie  Dorothea  was  not  a  princess,  and 
so  could  not  make  a  regular  marriage  with  his  son.  The 
way  to  overcome  this  obstacle  was  for  George  William  to 
legally  marry  Eleonore,  and  raise  her  to  the  rank  of  duchess, 

1  Wolfenbiittel  is  an  old  town  on  the  Oker,  not  far  from  Brunswick. 
The  famous  library  contains  Luther's  Bible,  and  the  ducal  schloss  and 
mortuary  chapel  are  the  only  other  buildings  worth  mentioning.  The  seat 
of  the  duchy  was  at  Brunswick. 


22    THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

and  by  this  means  Sophie  Dorothea  would  become  a 
princess,  and  equal  in  rank  with  Augustus  Frederick. 
This  reasoning  was  very  grateful  to  Eleonore,  for  it  showed 
the  way  to  the  goal  of  her  ambition.  She  willingly  agreed 
to  work  with  Antony  Ulrich  for  this  object,  and  they  took 
into  their  confidence  a  councillor  named  Schiitz.  Thus  a 
distinct  party  was  formed  at  Celle  opposed  to  the  interests 
of  the  Bishop  of  Osnabriick  and  in  favour  of  those  of 
Wolfenbiittel.  For  this  the  Duchess  Sophia  was  largely  to 
blame  ;  she  had  so  insulted  and  humiliated  Eleonore  that 
she  had  thrown  herself  into  the  rival  camp.  George 
William  was  so  much  under  his  wife's  influence  that  he 
readily  agreed  to  support  her  desire  to  become  his  duchess, 
especially  when  his  cousin  and  neighbour,  Duke  Antony 
Ulrich,  told  him  she  was  in  every  way  worthy  of  the  position, 
and  it  was  a  reproach  to  him  that  he  had  not  espoused  her 
as  his  legal  wife  long  before.  He  also  viewed  with  favour 
the  betrothal  of  Sophie  Dorothea  to  Augustus  Frederick,  to 
which  this  was  an  indispensable  preliminary.  Everything 
was  quickly  arranged,  and  it  was  resolved  to  petition  the 
Emperor.  He  was  already  friendly  to  Eleonore,  and  when 
her  prayers  were  backed  up  by  the  powerful  support  of  the 
Duke  of  Brunswick-Wolfenbiittel  and  her  husband,  they 
were  sure  to  be  granted. 

The  news  of  this  double  event  soon  reached  Osnabriick 
and  struck  consternation  into  the  hearts  of  Ernest  Augustus 
and  his  wife.  The  Duchess  Sophia  was  beside  herself  with 
rage,  and  wrote  to  tell  the  news  to  her  niece,  Elizabeth 
Charlotte  of  Orleans.  "  We  shall  soon  have  to  say  '  Madame 
la  Duchesse,' "  she  exclaimed,  "  to  this  little  clot  of  dirt,  for 
is  there  another  name  for  that  mean  intrigante  who  comes 
from  nowhere  ?  "  To  which  Elizabeth  Charlotte  replied  : 
"  Nowhere?  My  dear  aunt,  you  are  mistaken,  if  you  will 
allow  me  to  say  so  ;  she  comes  from  a  French  family,  and 
therefore  from  a  fraud."  Sophia  also  contemptuously 
spoke  of  Eleonore  as  "  the  Signora,"  professing  to  regard 
her  merely  as  the  successor  of  Signora  Buccolini,  and  she 
profanely  declared  that  she  would  rather  George  William's 
marriage  were  one  before  God  than  before  man.  But  these 
feminine  amenities,  like  the  Bishop's  protests,  were  unavail- 
ing ;  and  soon  Ernest  Augustus  and  Sophia  arrived  at  the 
conclusion  that,  as  it  was  too  late  to  prevent  the  mischief, 


THE  PROGRESS  OF  ELEONORE  23 

the  only  thing  remaining  was  to  safeguard  their  interests 
as  closely  as  possible.  A  fresh  agreement  was  drawn  up, 
lawyers  and  parchments  were  brought  forth,  and  the 
contract  between  the  two  brothers  was  debated  and  fought 
out,  clause  by  clause,  like  a  bill  in  committee.  The  heck- 
ling took  many  months  and  bore  fruit  in  many  documents. 
The  result  of  the  controversy  was  at  last  summarised  in  a 
document  duly  signed  by  Duke  George  William,  the 
Bishop  of  Osnabriick,  and  Duke  Antony  Ulrich  of  Wolfen- 
biittel.  The  agreement  was  signed  at  Celle  in  May,  1676, 
and  its  main  clauses  may  be  summarised  as  follows : — 

Duke  George  William  was  allowed  to  "  enter  into 
Christian  matrimony  with  the  high-born  lady  Eleonore  von 
Harburg,  Countess  of  Wilhelmsburg "  ;  and  his  daughter 
Sophie  Dorothea,  "  promised  to  wife  to  His  Serene  High- 
ness Augustus  Frederick  Duke  of  Brunswick-Wolfenbiittel," 
was  to  bear  the  title  and  arms  of  a  princess  by  birth  of 
Brunswick-Liineburg.  But  a  clause  was  added  :  "  Any 
other  children  who  may  be  hereafter  born  in  this  wedlock 
must  content  themselves  with  the  titles  of  Counts  and 
Countesses  of  Wilhelmsburg,  and  they  can  make  no  pre- 
tences to  the  succession  to  the  duchy,  which  is  bestowed  on 
Ernest  Augustus  Bishop  of  Osnabriick  and  his  heirs  male  ". 

The  unfairness  of  this  clause  is  patent ;  but  it  was  some- 
what modified  by  the  fact  that  it  was  extremely  unlikely 
Eleonore  would  bear  her  husband  any  more  children.  The 
Emperor's  assent  was  proclaimed  with  some  ceremony ;  a 
convocation  of  the  deputies  of  the  principality  was  then 
assembled,  and  their  agreement  with  the  treaty  duly  notified. 
When  all  the  legal  preliminaries  were  over,  George  William 
led  his  morganatic  wife  of  eleven  years  to  the  altar,  and 
espoused  her  with  much  pomp  and  solemnity  before  all 
his  court,  his  cousin  Antony  Ulrich,  and  the  little  Sophie 
Dorothea,  who  must  have  wondered  what  it  was  all  about. 
Ernest  Augustus  and  Sophia  were  not  present  at  these 
festivities,  and  they  dissembled  their  ire  as  best  they  could. 
"  Ah  !  "  exclaimed  the  Bishop  to  his  court  at  Osnabriick  on 
the  night  of  the  marriage,  "  my  brother's  French  madame 
is  not  a  jot  the  more  his  wife  for  being  his  duchess  ;  but  she 
hath  a  dignity  the  more,  and  therewith  may  madame  rest 
content."  The  jibe  was  duly  reported  to  the  court  of  Celle  ; 
but  Eleonore  did  not  feel  its  sting.  She  had  reached  the 


24    THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

summit  of  her  ambition  ;  she  was  the  acknowledged  consort 
of  the  sovereign  of  Celle  ;  her  name  was  associated  with  her 
husband's  in  the  Church  prayers  ;  her  child  was  ranked  as 
princess  and  betrothed  to  a  prince  of  equal  rank.  As 
Ernest  Augustus  had  said,  she  could  now  afford  to  rest 
content. 


CHAPTER  III. 

THE  WISDOM  OF  SERPENTS. 

(1676-1681.) 

Some  rise  by  sin,  and  some  by  virtue  fall. 

SHAKSPEARE. 

THE  sun  of  Eleonore's  triumph  had  no  sooner  reached  its 
meridian  than  its  radiance  began  to  be  overcast.  The  first 
cloud  was  the  death  of  the  young  Prince  Augustus  Frederick 
of  Wolfenbuttel,  who  was  killed  by  a  cannon-ball  at  the 
siege  of  Phillipsburg  a  few  months  after  his  betrothal  to 
Sophie  Dorothea.  His  death,  though  it  seemed  compara- 
tively unimportant,  was  destined  to  exercise  an  evil  influence 
over  the  fortunes  of  the  House  of  Celle,  and  it  snapped  the 
strongest  band  of  union  between  the  Celle- Wolfenbuttel 
party.  The  child  Princess  was  happily  unconscious  of  her 
loss.  The  betrothal  was  merely  a  matter  of  policy,  to  take 
effect  later ;  the  courtship  was  yet  to  come  ;  and  when  the 
tidings  came  to  Celle  of  the  death  of  her  betrothed  she  was 
too  young  to  mourn  him. 

At  first  the  Prince's  death  affected  but  little  the  entente 
between  the  courts  of  Celle  and  Wolfenbuttel.  Duke 
Antony  Ulrich  continued  the  close  friend  of  Eleonore  ;  he 
had  another  son,  more  nearly  the  age  of  Sophie  Dorothea, 
and  he  held  him  in  reserve  ;  for  the  hour  of  a  fresh  arrange- 
ment was  not  yet,  and  other  plans  were  in  the  air. 

Meanwhile  the  little  Princess  blossomed  into  lovely  girl- 
hood, the  spoiled  darling  of  her  father's  court.  She  was 
trained  in  all  the  accomplishments  suitable  to  her  rank,  but 
the  more  solid  part  of  her  education  seems  to  have  been 
neglected,  and  with  the  promise  of  great  beauty  she  early 
developed  a  passion  for  admiration  which  lasted  all  her 
life.  Now  that  she  was  a  princess  her  mother  was  careful 
to  keep  her  away  from  all  suitors  not  of  equal  rank.  The 
early  intimacy  between  the  handsome  young  Konigsmarck 

25 


26    THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

and  Sophie  Dorothea  was  broken  off,  and  Konigsmarck  was 
given  a  hint  to  leave  Celle.  He  repaired  to  England  to 
finish  his  education,  and  he  and  the  Princess  did  not  meet 
again  for  many  years,  and  by  that  time  she  was  a  wife  and 
the  mother  of  two  children.  Eleonore  was  justified  of  her 
wisdom,  for  when  Sophie  Dorothea  was  scarcely  more  than 
twelve  years  old  her'aunt,  the  Countess  de  Reuss,  found  in 
a  drawer  of  the  little  Princess's  bonheur  dujour  a  love-letter 
from  a  court  page.  The  boy  was  banished  for  his  audacity 
into  lifelong  exile,  and  the  governess,  whose  connivance  was 
responsible,  was  first  imprisoned  and  then  sent  away  in  dis- 
grace. The  news  of  this  affair,  which  was  but  a  childish 
folly  after  all,  got  bruited  abroad,  and  reached  the  ears  of 
the  alert  Duchess  Sophia.  That  lady  was  never  tired  of 
tirading  against  her  sister-in-law,  the  "  little  clot  of  dirt " 
as  she  invariably  calls  her  in  her  letters  to  her  niece,  and 
she  seized  on  this  incident  to  point  her  moral.  "  Is  it  not  a 
pity,"  she  wrote  to  the  Duchess  of  Orleans,  "  that  Ernest 
Augustus  and  myself  should  have  made  such  a  blunder  and 
called  to  our  court  that  '  little  clot  of  dirt,'  the  more  so  that 
we  had  at  hand  the  Biegle,  whom  William  liked  well  enough, 
though  she  was  not  so  fascinating  as  his  French  vixen,  who 
really  is  a  splendid  Stilckfleisch  ?  She  would  have  done  very 
well,  and  at  least  have  remained  in  her  proper  place.  Never 
mind,  Sophie  Dorothea  will  avenge  us  all  ;  she  is  a  little 
canaille,  and  we  shall  see." 

This,  to  put  it  mildly,  shows  a  loose  moral  view  on  the 
part  of  the  Duchess  Sophia,  to  say  nothing  of  the  coarseness 
of  expression.  Her  prophecy  about  the  little  Princess  did 
not  seem  very  likely  of  fulfilment  then.  The  death  of 
Augustus  Frederick  of  Wolfenblittel  left  the  field  open,  and 
an  alliance  with  the  great  House  of  Liineburg-Celle  was 
eagerly  courted.  The  beauty  and  wealth  of  Sophie  Dorothea, 
though  she  was  only  just  in  her  teens,  made  her  a  desirable 
bride,  and  it  was  no  longer  the  sons  of  the  nobility  who 
sought  her  hand,  but  princes  of  the  reigning  Houses  of 
Europe.  A  cousin  of  William  of  Orange,  Henry  Casimir 
of  Nassau-Dietz,  was  one  of  them  ;  for  another,  the  Duke 
of  Celle  had  almost  arranged  a  match  for  his  daughter  with 
Prince  George  of  Denmark  (afterwards  the  husband  of  Queen 
Anne  of  England)  when  the  Queen  of  Denmark  interposed, 
and,  with  much  violence  and  many  expletives,  broke  off  the 


THE  WISDOM  OF  SERPENTS  27 

match.  This  lady  had  once  received  Eleonore  at  dinner,  but 
•had  refused  her  the  kiss  of  honour.  In  revenge,  Eldonore 
had  commented  on  the  badness  of  the  Queen's  cuisine ;  so 
they  were  far  from  friends.  Probably  the  Duchess  Sophia, 
who  was  very  friendly  with  the  Queen  of  Denmark,  had  a 
hand  in  bringing  about  the  failure  of  these  negotiations,  for 
we  find  her  writing  :  "  Well  done  !  Fancy  a  king's  son  for 
that  bit  of  a  bastard  !  Upon  my  word,  one  has  to  come 
from  Poitou  to  be  so  impudent !  " 

The  gibe  was  of  course  aimed  at  Eleonore,  who  found 
herself  on  this  occasion  outwitted  by  her  sister-in-law.  Up 
to  this  time  Eleonore's  influence  with  her  husband  was  not 
sensibly  impaired.  His  thoughts  were  still  engrossed  with 
her  advancement,  and  he  first  made  a  new  treaty,  by  which 
his  wife  was  allowed  the  title  of  Duchess  of  Liineburg-Celle  ; 
and,  secondly,  drew  up  an  agreement  to  further  safeguard 
her  rights  and  those  of  her  daughter  to  the  rich  estates  of 
Wilhelmsburg.  Both  these  documents  were  countersigned 
by  the  wily  Ernest  Augustus,  whose  consent  was  necessary, 
but  who  was  only  induced  to  yield  by  a  high  price  being 
paid  for  his  complaisance. 

The  Duke  of  Celle  thought  his  wife  worthy  of  any 
pecuniary  sacrifice  at  this  time.  Her  conduct  was  so 
irreproachable  as  a  wife  and  a  mother  that  she  won  the 
esteem  even  of  those  who  were  prejudiced  against  her. 
Grave,  dignified,  and  beautiful,  she  held  her  husband's 
truant  affections  much  longer  than  any  one  would  have 
supposed,  and  was  careful  by  her  conduct  to  make  good 
the  position  to  which  she  had  been  raised.  Her  bitterest 
enemies  were  unable  to  tarnish  her  fair  name,  and  this  is 
no  mean  tribute  to  her  virtue  and  prudence  when  we  re- 
member the  age  in  which  she  lived  and  the  circumstances 
surrounding  her.  Under  Eleonore's  rule  the  court  of  Celle 
became  a  model  of  decorum.  The  jovial  Duke,  though 
wealthy  and  hospitable,  hated  display  and  ostentation,  and 
loved  nothing  so  much  as  a  quiet  life.  His  tastes  were  those 
of  an  English  country  squire.  He  was  a  fine  judge  of  wine, 
and  had  many  rare  vintages  in  his  cellar  ;  he  had  three 
hundred  and  seventy  horses  in  his  stables,  mostly  English 
or  bred  in  England  ;  his  kennels,  too,  were  largely  filled 
with  dogs  of  English  breed.  He  was  a  mighty  Nimrod, 
devoted  to  out-door  sports.  A  little  business  with  his 


28          THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

Ministers  and  a  good  deal  of  hunting — that  was  his  pro- 
gramme for  the  day,  and  in  the  evening  he  loved  nothing 
better  than  to  share  the  joys  of  the  domestic  hearth  with 
his  wife  and  child.  Eleonore,  unlike  most  ladies  who  have 
risen  in  the  world,  seemed  equally  averse  to  display  for  its 
own  sake,  and  shunned  rather  than  courted  the  trappings 
of  state.  So  the  court  of  Celle  was  peaceful  and  virtuous, 
perhaps  a  little  dull. 

It  was  far  different  at  the  court  of  Hanover. 

The  death  of  Duke  John  Frederick  without  issue  in  1679 
had  now  brought  Ernest  Augustus  and  Sophia  to  reign  over 
Hanover  as  well  as  Osnabrlick.  Duke  John  Frederick  was 
not  greatly  mourned,  and  his  reign,  though  merry,  had  been 
brief.  Like  his  brothers,  he  was  fond  of  Italy,  and  acquired 
there  a  love  of  foreign  ways  and  a  liking  for  the  Roman 
Catholic  religion,  to  which  he  became  a  convert.  Louis 
XIV.,  who  regarded  himself  as  a  defender  of  the  faith, 
gave  this  ducal  convert  a  handsome  pension,  and  treated 
him  with  marked  favour.  John  Frederick's  eyes  were 
dazzled  by  the  glory  of  the  Grand  Monarque,  whose 
splendour  was  the  wonder  of  Europe,  and  he  tried  to 
turn  Hanover  into  an  imitation  Versailles  :  pseudo-classical 
statues  were  erected  in  the  gardens  ;  fountains  were  dotted 
about  the  terraces  ;  there  were  fireworks,  masquerades,  and 
pastoral  plays,  Italian  singers  and  French  dancers  ;  many 
foreign  monsignori  flitted  about  the  court,  and  mass  was 
again  sung  in  the  churches.  The  honest  Hanoverians 
rubbed  their  eyes  and  knew  not  what  to  make  of  it  all. 
But  alien  though  their  Duke  was  in  some  things,  he  had 
one  taste  in  common  with  his  long-suffering  subjects — he 
loved  his  beer,  and,  after  a  prolonged  course  of  hard  drink- 
ing, he  died  from  an  overspell  of  it.  As  the  Duchess  Sophia 
wrote,  "  He  died  as  a  true  German  should,  glass  in  hand  ". 

This  "  true  German  "  being  gathered  to  his  fathers,  Duke 
Ernest  Augustus  and  Duchess  Sophia  made  haste  to  reign 
in  his  stead.  Sophia  thanked  Heaven  for  having  thus 
placed  her  husband  out  of  the  reach  of  his  enemies,  "as 
which  the  whole  court  of  Celle  had  now  to  be  regarded  ". 
It  was  indeed  a  notable  accession  of  dignity  and  wealth. 
Both  were  ambitious  and  loved  money  and  ostentation  ; 
they  now  had  a  chance  of  gratifying  their  tastes.  In  a 
smaller  way  Ernest  Augustus  had  also  imitated  Louis 


THE  WISDOM  OF  SERPENTS 


29 


XIV.'s  court,  at  Osnabriick,  and  it  seemed  to  that  "most 
Christian  "  monarch  that  the  new  Duke  of  Hanover  would 
follow  his  brother  in  matters  of  religion.  He  therefore 
despatched  a  plenipotentiary,  the  complaisant  de  Gourville, 
to  sound  him  on  the  subject  and  to  offer  the  same  bait  in 
the  way  of  pension  as  he  had  dangled  before  the  eyes  of 
John  Frederick.  But  Ernest  Augustus  was  now  not  so 
needy,  and  he  had  other  objects  in  view,  so  he  replied 
oracularly  that  though  no  doubt  a  change  of  religion  would 
be  advantageous  to  his  House  he  himself  was  too  old  to 
change.  All  religions  were  much  the  same  to  Sophia  ;  but 
she  disliked  being  meddled  with  in  spiritual  matters,  and  had 
her  own  interests,  too — her  English  interests,  then  remote 
—which  would  certainly  be  imperilled  by  a  change  of  faith. 
So  the  worthy  pair,  after  taking  counsel  together,  hit  on  a 
compromise  by  not  educating  their  daughter  Sophia  Char- 
lotte in  any  faith,  so  that  she  might  marry  the  most  promising 
prince  who  offered  himself,  whether  he  were  Catholic  or 
Protestant.  When  sounded  later  on  the  subject  of  her 
daughter's  faith,  the  Duchess  answered,  "  She  is  of  no 
religion  as  yet ".  It  was  lucky  that  Sophia  turned  a  deaf  ear 
to  the  blandishments  of  the  French  King  and  the  Pope,  or 
the  House  of  Hanover  and  the  Protestant  succession  would 
never  have  reigned  in  England. 

Though  under  the  new  regime  the  court  of  Hanover 
differed  in  religious  ceremonial  from  that  of  Versailles,  in 
other  respects  it  was  a  bad  imitation,  and  the  grafting  of 
spurious  French  architecture  on  the  little  mediaeval  German 
town  produced  many  incongruous  effects,  as  incongruous 
as  the  aping  of  French  manners  and  French  morals.  For 
the  court  of  Hanover  imitated  not  only  the  pleasures  of 
Versailles,  but  also  its  vices.  Unlike  his  brother  George 
William,  matrimony  had  effected  no  change  in  the  laxities 
of  Ernest  Augustus,  and  the  explanation  is  probably  to  be 
found  in  the  fact  that  his  was  a  marriage  of  policy,  while 
the  other's  was  a  marriage  of  love.  Ernest  Augustus  was 
a  man  of  six  times  the  ability  of  George  William.  He  was 
selfish  and  scheming,  but  there  was  a  certain  splendid  good 
nature  about  him,  and  though  his  court  was  dissolute,  it  was 
always  brilliant.  The  money  for  his  pleasures,  for  he  was  as 
great  a  spendthrift  as  his  brother  was  the  reverse  of  one,  he 
raised  either  by  squeezing  George  William  or  by  equipping 


3o    THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

regiments  of  his  subjects  and  selling  them  to  foreign  ser- 
vice, as,  for  instance,  to  fight  the  Emperor's  enemies  on 
the  Danube.  This  was  in  the  approved  style  of  the  Grand 
Monarque,  who  always  had  a  war  on  hand  by  way  of  a 
kingly  pastime.  Louis,  like  Solomon  of  old,  had  also  his 
beautiful  favourites  in  great  array,  who  reaped  rich  rewards 
of  wealth  and  influence.  This  period  of  European  history 
may  be  said  to  mark  the  apotheosis  of  military  and  political 
adventurers  and  royal  mistresses.  There  was  no  court 
without  its  adventurers,  and  a  king  was  hardly  a  king- 
without  a  bevy  of  mistresses.  Many  of  them  were  women 
of  noble  birth,  who  embarked  on  the  career  with  the  en- 
couragement of  their  parents  and  guardians,  and  even  of 
their  husbands.  Louise  de  Querouaille,  afterwards  Duchess 
of  Portsmouth,  went  over  from  France  to  England  to  win 
the  favour  of  Charles  II.  In  the  same  way  Clara  Elizabeth 
and  Catherine  Marie  Meisenbug  journeyed  to  Osnabruck 
in  the  hope  of  capturing  the  good- will  of  Ernest  Augustus 
and  his  son. 

Clara  Elizabeth  and  Catherine  Marie  were  of  noble 
birth.  Their  father,  Count  Carl  Philip  Meisenbug,  was  a 
needy  military  adventurer,  and  their  faces  were  their  only 
fortune.  Their  good  looks,  combined  with  much  impudence, 
a  lively  wit,  and  an  utter  absence  of  principle,  sufficed  to 
form  a  very  attractive  pair  in  those  days.  When  they  were 
only  in  their  teens  Count  Meisenbug  took  his  daughters  to 
Paris  with  the  hope  of  seeing  them  shine  at  the  court  of 
Louis  XIV.,  a  sort  of  Mecca  to  which  all  these  worldly 
pilgrims  were  then  bound.  But  the  established  royal 
favourites  there  did  not  view  the  fair  intruders  with  favour, 
and  gave  them  a  hint  that  it  would  be  better  to  decamp,  or 
Paris  would  soon  be  too  hot  to  hold  them.  The  Meisen- 
bugs,  who  were  poor  and  therefore  powerless,  needed  no 
second  warning.  Fear  lent  them  wings ;  they  packed  up 
with  all  despatch,  and,  looking  about  for  a  likely  spot  to 
push  their  fortunes,  they  hit  upon  the  little  court  of  Ernest 
Augustus,  and  set  out  thither  with  all  speed. 

The  court  was  then  at  Osnabruck,  and  it  so  chanced 
that  the  demoiselles  Meisenbug  arrived  just  when  the  two 
eldest  sons  of  Ernest  Augustus,  George  Louis  and  Frederick 
Augustus,  had  returned  from  their  travels,  accompanied  by 
their  governors  Platen  and  Bussche.  The  needy  Count  lost 


THE  WISDOM  OF  SERPENTS  31 

no  time  in  presenting  his  daughters  at  court,  and  evidently 
they  created  a  favourable  impression,  for  we  find  them 
helping  at  a  fete  in  honour  of  the  young  Princes'  return. 
The  demoiselles  Meisenbug,  who  were  fresh  from  all  the 
graces  and  amusements  of  Versailles,  composed  a  little 
pastoral  play  in  French,  which  they  craved  permission  to 
perform  before  the  Duke  and  Duchess,  and  the  performance 
was  the  most  successful  feature  of  the  festival.  It  was  given 
at  night  in  the  gardens,  which  were  illuminated  for  the 
occasion.  The  young  ladies  appeared,  as  befitted  their 
pastoral  simplicity,  in  the  guise  of  shepherdesses,  and  re- 
cited their  lines  so  prettily,  and  danced  and  sang  in  so 
charming  a  way  that  they  delighted  their  audience  and 
especially  won  the  hearts  of  the  governors  Platen  and 
Bussche.  Having  made  so  favourable  an  impression,  the 
sisters  remained  at  Osnabriick  to  follow  up  their  advantage. 
It  suited  them  well.  It  was  a  cheap  town  to  live  in  ;  they 
had  the  entree  of  the  court,  and  the  free-and-easy  air  of  the 
place  gave  them  room  to  develop  their  schemes.  At  that 
time  the  young  adventuresses  had  to  moderate  their  ambi- 
tions. Ernest  Augustus  was  far  above  them,  and  Prince 
George  Louis  was  only  a  boy,  and  was  sent  away  directly 
on  military  service.  But  meantime  the  Meisenbugs  made 
the  best  of  their  opportunities.  Platen  and  Bussche  were 
both  rising  men,  and  enjoyed  the  confidence  of  the  court. 
Failing  higher  game,  the  sisters  resolved  on  making  a  con- 
quest of  them,  and  they  unmasked  their  batteries  with  such 
success  that  before  long  they  were  comfortably  settled  in 
life,  Clara  Elizabeth  as  the  wife  of  Platen,  and  Catherine 
Marie  as  the  wife  of  Bussche. 

Attached  now  for  good  or  evil  to  the  House  of  Bruns- 
wick-Liineburg,  the  sisters  shared  in  its  improved  fortunes, 
.and  when  the  court  of  Ernest  Augustus  migrated  to  Hanover 
they  went  there  too. 

Of  the  two  sisters,  Clara  Elizabeth,  now  Madame  Platen, 
was  immeasurably  the  superior,  if  not  in  youth  and  beauty, 
in  cleverness  and  audacity.  This  woman  is  one  of  the 
worst  instances  in  history  of  the  evil  influence  of  the  court 
mistress.  She  had  no  redeeming  qualities  ;  she  was  un- 
scrupulous, ambitious,  and  shamelessly  corrupt.  She  was 
possessed  of  the  immense  power  of  one  who  has  a  fixed 
purpose  in  life,  and  who  will  stick  at  nothing  to  obtain  it. 


32    THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

Having  obtained  the  first  object  of  her  ambition,  a  safe  and 
respectable  position,  she  was  wise  enough  to  recognise  an 
identity  of  interest  with  her  husband,  and  to  see  that  as  he 
advanced  she  would  advance  with  him.  To  this  end  she 
sought  to  obtain  influence  over  Ernest  Augustus.  Platen, 
after  his  marriage,  was  promoted  to  a  confidential  position, 
and  when  the  court  went  to  Hanover  he  was  raised  to  the 
responsible  post  of  Minister.  His  wife  thus  found  herself 
within  the  charmed  circle  and  within  touch  of  what  she 
most  desired — power.  A  masterful  disposition  gave  her 
complete  sway  over  her  husband  ;  she  dictated  to  Platen, 
who,  in  turn,  advised  Ernest  Augustus.  But  this  was  too 
circuitous  a  method  for  Madame  Platen,  who  wished  to  be 
next  the  Duke  himself..  Before  long  a  post  was  found  for 
her  in  the  service  of  the  Duchess  Sophia,  and  thus  she  came 
frequently  before  the  notice  of  Ernest  Augustus.  She 
played  her  cards  very  discreetly,  and,  with  the  connivance 
of  her  husband,  brought  all  her  arts,  flatteries,  and  fascin- 
ations to  bear  upon  the  Duke ;  so  that  Ernest  Augustus 
was  first  astonished  at  her  cleverness,  next  flattered  by  her 
pretended  admiration  for  himself,  and  then  fascinated  by 
her  good  looks.  In  a  short  time  her  influence  over  him 
was  supreme.  Not  content  with  having  won  the  Duke,. 
Madame  Platen  determined  also  to  bring  the  son  under 
her  influence.  When  Prince  George  Louis  returned  from 
his  military  service  she  threw  her  sister,  Madame  Bussche, 
in  his  way.  Her  sister  was  younger  and  prettier  than 
Madame  Platen,  but  much  less  clever  and  wholly  under 
the  influence  of  this  imperious  woman.  The  precocious 
young  Prince  fell  captive  to  the  charms  of  Madame 
Bussche,  who  also  had  a  complaisant  husband.  Thus 
Madame  Platen  became  all-powerful  at  the  court  of 
Hanover.  It  is  an  ugly  chapter  in  the  history  of  the 
Hanoverian  House,  but  one  that  cannot  be  ignored. 

Some  court  mistresses  have  been  real  politicians,  and 
their  influence  on  public  affairs  has  been  for  good  and  not 
evil.  But  Madame  Platen  was  hardly  a  political  woman  of 
the  first  rank  ;  she  was  incapable  of  taking  a  wide  view  of 
affairs,  and  her  efforts  were  directed  towards  the  immediate 
aggrandisement  of  the  principality  of  Hanover,  without  a 
thought  of  the  larger  interests  outside.  Into  the  family 
feud  between  Celle  and  Hanover  she  entered  with  zest,  and 


THE  WISDOM  OF  SERPENTS 


33 


made  common  cause  with  Ernest  Augustus  and  Sophia 
against  EMonore  and  the  Celle-Wolfenbuttel  party.  She 
noted  the  growing  intimacy  between  George  William  and 
Antony  Ulrich,  which  she  shrewdly  suspected  boded  no 
good  to  the  fortunes  of  the  court  of  Hanover.  Her  methods 
were  essentially  those  of  the  backstairs,  and  she  persuaded 
Ernest  Augustus  to  employ  spies  at  Celle  to  report  all  that 
went  on  there.  In  this  way  she  acquired  a  knowledge  of 
the  disposition  of  the  Ministers  who  held  office  at  Celle. 
The  most  powerful  of  them  all  was  Bernstorff,  the  Duke's 
Prime  Minister.  Bernstorff  was  an  ambitious  and  avaricious 
man  with  little  principle,  who  had  already  shown  jealousy 
of  the  influence  which  El^onore  exercised  over  her  husband 
and  resented  her  interference  in  affairs  of  state.  Madame 
Platen  saw  in  him  an  instrument  for  her  designs ;  she 
approached  him  with  many  promises,  and  some  more  sub- 
stantial pledges  from  Ernest  Augustus — item,  a  gold  snuff- 
box set  with  diamonds,  and  similar  tokens  of  good-will. 
Bernstorff  was  quite  willing  to  listen  to  these  overtures  ;  he 
was  anxious  to  become  a  great  landed  proprietor,  and  Ernest 
Augustus  promised  to  advance  his  wishes  in  this  and  other 
respects  if  he  would  carry  out  his  plans.  He  was  opposed 
to  the  Celle-Wolfenbuttel  party  headed  by  the  Duchess 
Eleonore,  he  desired  nothing  better  than  her  downfall ;  so 
he  took  the  bribe,  and  confidential  communications  were 
opened  up  with  Hanover.  In  particular  he  warned  Ernest 
Augustus  of  the  schemes  of  Duke  Antony  Ulrich,  who  was 
now  urging  the  betrothal  of  his  second  son  to  the  little 
Sophie  Dorothea.  These  communications  were  not  nomin- 
ally carried  on  between  responsible  Ministers,  but  between 
a  spy  at  Celle  and  Madame  Platen  at  Hanover,  so  that  if 
anything  transpired  they  could  both  be  disowned  by  the 
responsible  officials  ;  but  in  reality  Madame  Platen  was 
dictating  the  policy  of  Hanover. 

A  pretty  picture  of  moral  and  political  corruption,  it 
must  be  confessed.  One  wonders  what  the  haughty  Duchess 
Sophia  thought  of  it  all,  and  by  what  inexplicable  means 
this  inscrutable  woman  was  brought  to  become  a  passive 
witness  of  the  double  capture  by  audacious  adventuresses 
of  her  husband  and  her  son.  Her  policy  was  always  to 
ignore  anything  she  could  not  help  ;  and  in  this  case 
she  seems  to  have  offered  no  protest.  The  key  to  this 

3 


34    THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

riddle  is  probably  to  be  found  in  her  character.  The  moral 
objection  would  not  appeal  to  her,  for  though  the  Duchess 
Sophia  in  her  own  personal  conduct  was  absolutely  above 
reproach,  and  there  is  abundant  evidence  to  prove  she  held 
that  the  virtue  of  princesses  should  be  above  suspicion,  yet 
she  had  been  trained  in  a  school  and  an  age  which  did  not 
demand  the  same  standard  of  morality  from  men  as  from 
women,  least  of  all  from  princes.  In  her  day  women  of  the 
Platen  type  were  as  much  a  part  of  the  entourage  of  a  court 
as  the  lackeys  in  the  kitchen  or  the  grooms  in  the  stables, 
and  since  this  was  so,  why  not  Madame  Platen  as  well  as 
another  ?  Sophia  had  done  her  duty  to  Ernest  Augustus 
in  every  sense  of  the  word.  She  had  been  a  good  and 
faithful  wife ;  she  had  upheld  the  dignity  of  the  courts  of 
Osnabriick  and  Hanover  ;  she  had  borne  her  husband  six 
children,  five  sons  and  a  daughter  ;  and  though  they  had 
never  any  love  in  the  highest  sense  for  one  another,  yet  in 
time  affection  seems  to  have  sprung  up  between  this  curious 
couple,  and  they  got  on  very  well  together,  mainly  on  the 
principle  of  leaving  each  other  alone.  According  to  his 
lights,  and  possibly  her  lights  also,  Ernest  Augustus  was  a 
good  husband  ;  he  always  treated  his  consort  with  profound 
respect,  and  outwardly  he  fulfilled  the  letter  of  his  contract 
with  her,  it  was  only  in  the  spirit  he  failed,  but  Sophia 
probably  did  not  care  about  that.  She  was  his  duchess, 
the  mother  of  his  sons,  the  great  lady  of  the  House  of 
Brunswick-Liineburg,  and  that  sufficed  her.  She  was 
fond  of  her  children,  too,  especially  of  the  younger  boys 
and  her  daughter,  but  for  George  Louis,  her  eldest  son,  she 
had  very  little  love.  She  therefore  probably  regarded  his 
affair  with  Madame  Bussche  with  indifference.  Nor  did 
religious  scruples  enter  to  any  extent.  She  was  a  free- 
thinking  woman,  who,  from  a  philosophic  eminence,  looked 
down  upon  all  dogma  with  contempt.  "  The  Princess 
Sophia,"  says  Dean  Lockier,  "  was  a  woman  of  good  sense 
and  excellent  conversation.  I  was  very  well  acquainted 
with  her.  She  sat  very  loose  in  her  religious  principles, 
and  used  to  take  a  particular  pleasure  in  setting  a  heretic 
(infidel),  whenever  she  could  meet  such,  and  one  of  her 
chaplains  disputing  together."  This  is  a  quaint  character- 
istic ;  and  we  may  picture  Sophia's  face  as  she  baited  her 
chaplain  with  some  truculent  infidel,  and  chuckled  while 


THE  WISDOM  OF  SERPENTS  35 

they  fought   together,  finally   dismissing   them    with   "  A 
plague  on  both  your  houses".1 

Hitherto  we  have  viewed  this  Princess  in  a  somewhat 
unamiable  light — the  side  she  showed  to  Eleonore  ;  it  is 
only  fair  to  turn  the  other  side  of  the  shield.  Her  failings 
were  the  failings  of  her  time,  her  virtues  were  all  her  own. 
Reared  in  a  dissolute  court,  married  into  a  vicious  one, 
no  word  of  scandal  was  ever  breathed  against  her  moral 
character.  She  remained  beyond  and  apart,  a  serene  and 
haughty  figure,  head  and  shoulders  above  the  mean,  coarse, 
voluptuous,  lying  crowd  with  which  she  was  surrounded. 
Whatever  was  pure  and  of  good  repute,  whatever  made  for 
the  higher  and  intellectual  life,  turned  to  Sophia  at  the 
court  of  Hanover.  She  was  a  woman  of  great  parts,  speak- 
ing five  languages — Low  Dutch,  German,  French,  Italian, 
and  English — fluently,  and  was  learned  in  the  literature  of 
them  all.  She  attracted  to  Hanover  some  of  the  choicest 
intellectual  spirits  of  the  age,  and  among  them  was  the 
great  and  learned  Leibniz,  whose  friend  and  patron  she 
was.  In  turn  he  warmly  respected  and  admired  her :  she 
was  the  "Serena"  of  his  letters,  and  together  they  dis- 
cussed those  subtle  philosophies  beside  which  such  things 
as  court  intrigues  and  court  courtesans  were  as  nothing 
worth. 

It  was  doubtless  her  communing  in  these  serene  alti- 
tudes, together  with  the  considerations  before  mentioned, 
which  enabled  the  Duchess  Sophia  to  ignore  Madame 
Platen  and  lesser  annoyances.  Outwardly  she  received 
from  the  court  mistress  every  mark  of  respect  and  homage. 
However  impudent,  brazen,  and  intriguing  Madame  Platen 
might  be,  she  was  always  submissive  and  decorous  before 
the  Duchess  Sophia,  always  her  very  humble  lady-in-waiting. 
The  Duchess  was  not  of  a  jealous  temperament,  and  in 
matters  where  her  rank  and  her  rights  were  not  imperilled 
her  heart  did  not  enter.  Madame  Platen  would  always  be 
Madame  Platen  ;  she  could  never  rise,  for  instance,  to  the 
heights  of  the  upstart  Eleonore,  and  arrogate  to  herself  the 
position  of  an  equal  of  the  daughter  of  kings  ;  and  so  long 

1  A  similar  pastime  was  frequently  indulged  in  by  her  grand-daughter-in- 
law,  Queen  Caroline,  wife  of  George  II.,  who  was  also  most  tolerant  of  her 
husband's  mistresses.  No  doubt  she  learned  both  these  peculiarities  from 
Sophia. 

3* 


36    THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

as  she  kept  her  place,  what  matter  ?  Besides,  according  to 
her  lights,  the  woman  was  working  for  the  greater  glory  of 
the  House  of  Brunswick-Liineburg  and  against  the  hated 
El^onore.  These  seem  the  ostensible  grounds  on  which  it 
can  be  explained  why  the  Duchess  Sophia  allowed,  without 
protest,  such  a  power  near  her  throne.  But  there  was 
perhaps  another  reason,  too,  which  overshadowed  all  the 
rest. 

The  great  and  splendid  inheritance  of  the  throne  of 
England  already  flitted  before  Sophia's  dazzled  eyes.  Eng- 
lish events  absorbed  her  to  the  exclusion  of  others,  and  the 
affairs  of  the  court  of  Hanover  were  mere  village  politics 
beside  them.  Sophia  had  one  virtue  for  which  every 
Englishman  will  love  her.  She  loved  "her  country,"  as 
she  called  England,  with  all  her  heart  and  soul  and  strength  ; 
"her  country,"  which  she  had  never  seen,  which  she  was 
destined  never  to  see ;  "  her  country,"  over  which  her 
grandfather  had  reigned  a  well-nigh  absolute  monarch  ; 
"  her  country,"  to  which  her  mother  had  gone  back,  as  to 
home,  to  end  her  days  ;  "  her  country,"  for  which  her 
brother,  the  dashing  Prince  Rupert,  had  fought  on  the 
King's  side  throughout  the  Great  Rebellion  ;  "  her  country," 
over  which  her  son  was  to  reign  and  her  children's  children 
from  generation  to  generation.  The  reproach  of  being 
German  and  alien  in  sympathy,  later,  often  urged  against 
the  House  of  Hanover,  could  never  have  been  brought 
against  Sophia,  for  her  heart  was  as  "  entirely  English  "  as 
Queen  Anne's.  She  early  imbibed  her  love  for  England 
and  things  English.  She  spoke  the  language  fluently,  far 
better  than  many  a  Stuart.  She  was  learned  in  England's 
history,  its  customs,  and  its  laws.  She  had  an  English 
maid  always  with  her.  In  her  youth  she  had  been  within 
measurable  distance  of  becoming  Queen  Consort  of  Eng- 
land ;  in  her  old  age  she  was  within  an  ace  of  being  Queen 
Regnant.1  It  is  a  pity  she  was  never  Queen  of  England. 
She  would  have  been  another  and  a  wiser  Elizabeth,  whom 
in  many  ways  she  strongly  resembled — in  her  love  of 
statecraft,  her  broad  and  liberal  view  of  things,  her  contempt 
for  jarring  creeds,  her  wisdom  and  resource.  Yes,  it  is  a 
thousand  pities  she  was  never  Queen  of  England  ;  she 

1  She  died  less  than  three  months  before  Queen  Anne. 


THE  WISDOM  OF  SERPENTS  37 

would  have  made  a  wiser  ruler  than  any  of  her  Stuart 
cousins,  and  a  far  better  than  any  of  her  descendants,  save 
only  the  present  illustrious  occupant  of  the  throne,  and 
his  revered  mother,  whose  long  and  beneficent  reign  won 
for  her  the  first  place  among  England's  monarchs  of  any 
dynasty. 


CHAPTER  IV. 

PRINCE  GEORGE  GOES  A- WOOING. 

(1681-1682.) 

He  that  travels  in  a  country  before  he  has  some  entrance  into  the 
language,  goeth  to  school  and  not  to  travel. — BACON. 

FROM  her  watch-tower  at  Hanover  the  Duchess  Sophia 
followed  with  keen  interest  the  course  of  events  in  England, 
an  interest  which  increased  every  day  of  her  life  until  at 
last  it  became  an  absorbing  passion.  She  spared  no  pains 
to  keep  up  a  good  understanding  between  herself  and  her 
English  relatives.  When  Charles  II.  was  restored  to  the 
throne  of  his  ancestors,  she  sent  him  a  warm  letter  of  con- 
gratulation, written  in  the  oddest  French,  which  is  still 
preserved  among  the  Lambeth  manuscripts.  Throughout 
her  cousin's  reign  Sophia  continued  to  watch  affairs  in  Eng- 
land. She  noted  Charles's  childless  marriage  to  Catherine 
of  Braganza.1  She  noted  the  dislike  and  jealousy  of  the 
people  of  England  to  Popery,  and  the  conversion  of  the 
heir  to  the  throne,  the  Duke  of  York,  to  the  Roman  Catholic 
religion,  and  his  consequent  unpopularity.  She  noted  the 
marriage  of  his  eldest  daughter,  Princess  Mary  of  York,  to 
William  of  Orange,  and  the  childless  condition  of  the 
Dutchman  and  his  spouse.  Last  of  all,  she  noted  that  the 
Princess  Anne  of  York,  on  whom  it  seemed  likely  the  crown 
of  England  would  devolve  in  the  course  of  nature,  had 
reached  a  marriageable  age,  and  she  saw  in  her  son,  George 
Louis,  the  husband  for  her,  and  prepared  to  act. 

George  Louis  had  now  attained  his  majority.  He  was 
not  an  ideal  lover,  by  no  means  a  Prince  Charming,  though 
so  far  as  looks  were  concerned  he  might  have  passed  muster. 

1 "  She  [Sophia]  told  me,"  writes  Lord  Dartmouth  many  years  later, 
"that  she  was  once  like  to  have  been  married  to  King  Charles  II.,  which 
would  not  have  been  worse  for  the  nation,  considering  how  many  children 
she  had  brought,  to  which  I  most  sincerely  agreed." 

38 


PRINCE  GEORGE  GOES  A-WOOING 


39 


He  was  about  the  middle  height,  dark,  with  strongly  marked 
features,  but  he  carried  himself  badly,  and  was  awkward  of 
figure,  still  more  awkward  in  manner.  He  resembled  neither 
of  his  parents.  Ernest  Augustus  gilded  his  faults  by  a 
certain  generosity  and  refinement,  which  earned  for  him 
the  title  of  "  the  gentleman  of  Germany  ".  George  Louis 
was  niggardly,  he  had  no  charm  of  manner,  he  was  vindic- 
tive, sullen,  slow  of  speech,  and  altogether  unprepossessing. 
His  mother,  as  we  have  seen,  was  a  woman  of  high  culture 
and  education  and  a  ready  wit,  which  caused  her  to  be 
known  as  "  the  merry,  debonnaire  princess  of  Germany ". 
George  Louis's  education  had  been  neglected,  he  had  no 
love  of  learning,  and  an  intense  dislike  of  literature,  nor 
had  he  any  accomplishments  save  the  love  of  music  char- 
acteristic of  his  race.  But,  on  the  other  hand,  he  was  a 
good  soldier,  a  man  of  the  camp  rather  than  of  the  court. 
His  tutors  threw  up  their  hands  in  despair  when  they 
endeavoured  to  teach  him  anything  from  books,  but  he 
took  to  military  service  as  a  duck  takes  to  water.  He 
served  under  his  father,  when  only  fifteen,  in  the  campaign 
in  1675,  and  fought  bravely  at  Consarbruck,  at  the  siege  of 
Treves,  and  in  the  campaign  on  the  Rhine  ;  he  was  at  the 
sieges  of  Maestricht  and  Charleroy,  and  again  at  the  battle 
near  St.  Denis,  and  on  every  occasion  he  distinguished  him- 
self. He  had  his  own  rough  code  of  honour.  He  never 
told  a  lie.  He  possessed  in  a  marked  degree  that  cour- 
age which  even  their  bitterest  detractors  cannot  withhold 
from  the  princes  of  the  House  of  Hanover.  Yet  with  all 
his  military  instinct  he  loved  not  bloodshed  for  its  own 
sake  ;  he  was  a  man  of  peace.  He  had  humanity  for  the 
wounded  on  the  field  of  battle,  and  could  respect  a  fallen 
foe.  His  methods  were  brutal,  but  straightforward  ;  he  was 
no  intriguer,  and,  though  profligate,  he  was  honest. 

Ernest  Augustus  was  in  despair  at  the  rude  manners  of 
his  boorish  son,  and  thought  that  travel  would  improve 
him.  As  he  was  not  over-welcome  at  home,  he  sent  him 
to  the  court  of  France,  to  pick  up  a  little  polish  for  one 
thing,  and,  for  another,  to  try  to  improve  matters  between 
Louis  XIV.  and  himself.  But  the  young  Prince  returned 
much  the  same.  He  was  not  a  diplomatist,  and  his  efforts 
in  that  direction  were  not  a  success. 

It  was  then  that  the  Duchess  Sophia  broached  her  plan 


4o    THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

of  sending  him  to  England  as  a  suitor  of  the  Princess  Anne 
of  York.  It  was  emphatically  her  plan.  Madame  Platen 
had  nothing  to  do  with  it,  was  not  even  consulted  ;  in  fact, 
Sophia  never  recognised  in  any  way  this  woman's  influence. 
The  moment  could  not  have  been  more  propitious.  The 
anti-Popery  feeling  was  running  high  in  England,  and 
already  overtures  had  been  made  by  the  Protestant  party 
to  the  House  of  Hanover.  Duke  Ernest  Augustus  did  not 
think  much  of  these  overtures  ;  the  prospect  was  too  vague. 
England  was  to  him  little  more  than  a  geographical  ex- 
pression, and  the  violent  events  of  recent  years  filled  him 
with  distrust.  He  had  witnessed  in  England  the  Great 
Rebellion,  the  downfall  of  the  Monarchy,  the  execution  of 
the  King,  the  setting  up  of  the  Commonwealth,  the  down- 
fall of  the  Commonwealth,  the  restoration  of  the  Monarchy, 
and  now  the  Puritan  party  seemed  to  be  rising  again.  He 
did  not  trust  a  nation  which  indulged  in  such  extremes,  and 
he  regarded  England  much  as  the  average  Englishman 
to-day  regards  France.  But  he  was  not  averse  from  the 
idea  of  marrying  his  eldest  son  to  a  Princess  of  the  Royal 
House  of  England  ;  in  any  case  she  would  have  a  goodly 
dower,  and  so,  to  please  his  wife  and  his  own  inclinations, 
he  consented  to  find  the  money  to  despatch  George  Louis 
to  England  in  a  manner  befitting  his  rank  and  errand. 

The  Duchess  Sophia  was  delighted  with  her  husband's 
willingness  to  fall  in  with  her  plan  (she  little  knew  that  all 
the  while  behind  her  back  he  was  intriguing  for  another 
match  for  Prince  George,  should  this  fall  through),  and  she 
took  the  keenest  interest  in  her  son's  visit.  Another  also 
took  an  interest,  that  born  intriguer,  William  of  Orange,  the 
husband  of  the  Princess  Mary  of  York,  who  was  jealously 
watching  events  in  England.  When  he  heard  of  George 
Louis's  intended  visit  he  scented  mischief  ahead,  and  sent  a 
flattering  invitation  to  Hanover  asking  the  young  Prince  to 
spend  a  month  with  him  at  the  Hague  on  his  way  to  England. 
Sophia  was  glad  that  her  son  should  visit  his  Stuart  cousins 
in  Holland,  and  the  invitation  was  accepted.  It  was  a  fatal 
error  of  policy,  for  William  soon  learnt  from  the  young  Prince 
the  object  of  his  mission,  and  immediately  set  to  work  to 
render  it  null  and  void.  He,  too,  was  half  a  Stuart,  a  grand- 
son of  Charles  I.,  and  the  prospect  of  the  crown  of  England 
had  its  charms  for  him  also  ;  he  coveted  it  not  merely  for 


PRINCE    GEORGE    LOUIS    OF    HANOVER 
(AFTERWARDS    GEORGE    I.    OF    ENGLAND). 

From  a  picture  at  Hanover. 


PRINCE  GEORGE  GOES  A-WOOING  41 

his  wife.  If  George  Louis  married  the  Princess  Anne,  and 
the  Princess  of  Orange  died  before  her  (as  in  fact  she  did, 
though  not  till  she  had  been  Queen),  William,  her  consort, 
would  probably  have  to  give  way  to  their  prior  claims  ;  for 
George  Louis  was  a  Protestant,  and  only  one  step  further 
removed  from  the  blood  royal  of  England  than  himself; 
therefore  it  behoved  him  to  move  heaven  and  earth  to  pre- 
vent this  match. 

He  had  spies  in  England,  at  Hanover,  and  at  Celle,  and 
he  set  them  all  at  work.  His  agent  in  Hanover  was  probably 
Madame  Platen,  and  at  Celle  Bernstorff,  both  of  whom  were 
open  to  bribes.  Their  work  was  simple :  they  were  to  re- 
present to  their  respective  princes  how  much  more  suitable 
and  advantageous  it  would  be  if  George  Louis  married  Sophie 
Dorothea.  Of  course,  they  could  do  nothing  more  than 
prepare  the  ground,  and  drop  a  hint  now  and  then  ;  but 
even  that  would  bear  fruit.  In  England  William  had 
emissaries  everywhere,  at  court,  and  even  in  the  household 
of  Princess  Anne. 

Meanwhile  the  unsuspecting  George  Louis  parted  from 
his  cousins,  William  and  Mary,  with  many  expressions  of 
good-will,  and  set  sail  for  England.  He  anchored  off 
Greenwich  early  in  December,  1680  (New  Style).  His 
arrival  was  well  timed,  from  the  popularity  point  of  view. 
Public  feeling  was  excited  over  the  so-called  Popish  plots, 
and  the  unpopularity  of  the  Duke  of  York  was  at  its  height. 
The  Bill  which  excluded  him  from  the  succession  to  the 
throne  because  he  was  a  Papist  was  before  Parliament,  and 
in  the  event  of  its  passing  into  law  George  Louis's  prospects 
as  a  Protestant  descendant  of  the  Stuarts  would  be  im- 
proved. The  Bill  did  pass  with  acclamation*  but  the  King 
dissolved  Parliament  immediately. 

George  Louis's  arrival,  though  his  errand  was  well 
known,  does  not  seem  to  have  been  equally  popular  with 
the  court ;  his  barque  lay  in  the  mud  off  Greenwich,  but  no 
one  was  sent  to  look  out  for  him  or  to  bid  him  welcome. 
When  he  landed  in  England  again  it  was  as  King  :  such 
are  the  ironies  of  history.  At  this  time  George  Louis  did 
not  expect  great  things  ;  he  sent  to  his  uncle  Rupert,  and 
presumably  explained  matters  to  him.  Henceforward 
things  went  more  smoothly.  George  Louis  was  lodged  in 
Whitehall  and  received  by  Charles  II.  very  graciously.  He 


42          THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

was  presented  to  the  Princess  Anne,  and  by  the  King's 
permission  suffered  to  kiss  her  cheek  ;  but  his  wooing  did 
not  prosper  as  might  have  been  expected  from  so  promising 
a  beginning.  The  Princess  Anne  at  that  time  was  seventeen 
years  old,  in  the  full  bloom  of  youth,  and  had  a  considerable 
share  of  good  looks  of  a  florid  description.  Accustomed  as 
she  was  to  all  the  grace  and  splendour  of  the  English  court, 
Princess  Anne  looked  with  little  favour  on  the  awkward 
advances  of  her  German  cousin,  who  could  not  speak  a 
word  of  the  English  language,  and  whose  person  was  not 
pleasing  nor  his  manner  courtly.  Naturally  reserved,  he 
was  very  shy  when  he  was  first  presented  to  her,  and 
awkward  in  saluting  her,  and  William  of  Orange  caused  it 
to  be  whispered  to  Anne  that  the  Prince's  backwardness 
was  owing  to  an  irrepressible  disgust  which  he  felt  for  her 
at  first  sight,  and  that  he  had  spoken  slightingly  of  her 
charms.  This  was  enough  for  Anne,  whose  vanity  was 
easily  wounded  ;  she  would  have  nothing  more  to  say  to 
her  loutish  lover,  and  cherished  a  lifelong  resentment  at 
the  imaginary  affront. 

Neither  the  King  nor  the  Duke  of  York  favoured  the  suit 
of  the  Hanoverian  Prince,  because  he  was  unjustly  supposed 
to  be  in  league  with  the  Prince  of  Orange.  But  still 
George  Louis  lingered  in  England,  and  paid  a  visit  to 
Cambridge,  where  he  was  received  with  every  mark  of 
honour  and  given  the  degree  of  Doctor  of  Laws.  Cam- 
bridge was  thus  early  in  the  field  to  demonstrate  her  loyalty 
to  the  House  of  Hanover.  When  it  is  remembered  that  the 
Prince  was  a  stranger  to  England,  and  could  not  speak  a 
word  of  the  language,  it  is  evident  there  must  have  been 
some  political  motive  on  the  part  of  the  university.  It  was 
to  be  found  in  party  feeling,  which  then  ran  high.  Parlia- 
ment met  at  Oxford,  and  was  still  clamouring  for  the 
Exclusion  Bill,  but  the  King  put  his  foot  down,  absolutely 
refused  to  alter  the  succession,  and  again  dissolved  Parlia- 
ment. This  was  a  severe  blow  to  the  Protestant  party  and 
incidentally  to  the  Protestant  princes. 

Soon  after,  George  Louis  was  summoned  home  abruptly, 
and  he  returned  to  Hanover  in  the  spring.  Ernest 
Augustus,  seeing  there  was  no  hope  of  his  son  marrying 
the  Princess  Anne,  became  impatient  about  the  English 
succession,  for  which  he  did  not  care  a  fig  ;  besides,  there 


PRINCE  GEORGE  GOES  A-WOOING  43 

was  a  tendency  in  England  to  draw  the  young  Prince  into 
intrigues,  and  both  Sophia  and  himself  always  opposed  any- 
thing which  might  tend  to  embarrass  the  reigning  House 
of  England.  In  this  respect  the  conduct  of  the  House  of 
Hanover  forms  an  honourable  contrast  to  that  of  William 
of  Orange.  Her  son's  return  empty-handed  was  a  bitter 
disappointment  to  Sophia,  who  saw  her  English  hopes 
shattered.  She  withdrew  once  more  to  the  consolations 
of  philosophy,  conscious  that  the  failure  of  her  plan  had 
brought  with  it  a  waning  of  her  influence  with  her  husband. 
George  Louis  had  been  sent  on  a  wild-goose  chase,  and 
Ernest  Augustus  had  to  pay  the  bill,  which  he  did  with 
very  ill  grace ;  for,  though  he  was  lavish  with  money 
where  his  own  pleasures  were  concerned,  he  had  the 
German  thriftiness  about  spending  it  on  others. 

Madame  Platen's  star  now  rose  in  the  ascendant,  and 
she  urged  with  added  force  and  plausibility  the  scheme  of 
a  marriage  between  George  Louis  and  his  cousin,  Sophie 
Dorothea.  Of  course,  all  had  to  be  done  behind  the  back 
of  the  Duchess  Sophia,  who  regarded  the  court  of  Celle 
with  unconcealed  aversion.  Ernest  Augustus  had  not  the 
same  feeling  of  personal  bitterness  against  Eleonore  as  his 
wife,  and  he  was  quite  willing  to  make  terms  with  George 
William,  or,  for  a  matter  of  that,  with  her,  if  he  could  there- 
by add  to  his  fortunes,  and  he  therefore  gave  ready  ear  to 
the  idea.  The  advantages  of  the  union  were  many  and 
obvious  ;  the  young  lady  was  rich,  her  dower  would  be 
large,  the  marriage  would  unite  the  severed  principalities 
of  Celle  and  Hanover,  and  so  add  enormously  to  the  power 
of  the  House  of  Brunswick-Llineburg ;  it  would  end  an 
unpleasant  family  feud,  fraught  with  weakness  and  danger 
to  both  parties,  and  would  set  up  again  an  identity  of 
interest  between  the  brothers.  All  this  would  happen  if 
Sophie  Dorothea  married  George  Louis  ;  but  if  she  married 
a  rival  prince,  under  the  present  strained  relations,  dangers 
would  arise  which  it  would  be  impossible  to  foresee.  The 
breach  would  widen,  and  the  principality  of  Hanover  would 
be  threatened  with  a  foe  at  its  very  doors.  From  a  political 
point  of  view  nothing  could  be  better  than  this  marriage — 
for  Hanover.  At  Celle  the  ground  was  not  unprepared  ; 
Platen  had  communicated  with  Bernstorff,  and  that  pliant 
tool  had  also  sounded  George  William  who  was  more  than 


44          THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

willing  ;  the  failure  of  other  matrimonial  plans  for  his 
daughter  made  him  more  complaisant.  As  the  continual 
dropping  of  water  wears  away  a  stone,  so  Bernstorff,  by 
hint  and  innuendo,  was  slowly  undermining  the  influence 
of  the  Duchess  of  Celle.  He  traded  on  the  fact  that  she 
was  "  the  Frenchwoman,"  he  exaggerated  the  jealousy  which 
arose  from  so  many  French  officers  holding  commissions  in 
the  ducal  army,  he  hinted  discreetly  to  the  Duke  that  the 
neighbouring  princes  and  even  the  Emperor  were  laughing 
at  him  because  he  allowed  himself  to  be  ruled  by  his  wife, 
and  he  particularly  opposed  the  growing  power  of  the  Celle- 
Wolfenbiittel  party. 

Duke  Antony  Ulrich  had  by  this  time  brought  forward 
his  eldest  surviving  son,  a  handsome  prince,  as  a  suitor  for 
the  hand  of  Sophie  Dorothea.  The  young  couple  were  of 
a  suitable  age,  and  Eleonore  warmly  encouraged  the  match. 
If  the  matter  had  rested  with  her,  the  betrothal  would  long 
since  have  taken  place.  Her  first  check  had  come  when  she 
proposed  it  to  George  William.  To  her  astonishment  he 
held  back.  He  was  superstitious,  and  thought  the  unto- 
ward ending  of  the  first  match  between  his  daughter  and  a 
Prince  of  the  House  of  Wolfenbuttel  was  an  ill  omen.  He 
did  not  approve  of  her  marriage  with  the  younger  brother 
when  she  had  been  betrothed  to  the  elder,  for  in  Germany 
at  that  time  betrothal  was  almost  as  solemn  a  compact  as 
marriage  itself.  These  were  the  reasons  he  put  forward 
for  opposing  the  betrothal  ;  but  Eleonore,  who  suspected 
something  behind,  talked  him  over,  and  at  last  he  was 
induced  to  unwillingly  give  a  half  promise  that  was  almost 
a  consent,  on  the  condition  that  the  betrothal  should  be 
postponed  until  Sophie  Dorothea  was  sixteen,  and  mean- 
time the  arrangement  should  be  kept  secret.  With  this 
Eleonore  and  Antony  Ulrich  had  to  be  content.  The  Duke 
was  easily  swayed,  and  it  was  Bernstorff  who  prompted  the 
delay  ;  he  now  used  the  time  gained  to  further  oppose  the 
match  and  to  urge  the  Hanoverian  claims. 

So  matters  went  on  until  September,  1682,  when  Sophie 
Dorothea  was  to  attain  her  sixteenth  birthday.  In  some 
way  the  half  promise  which  the  Duke  of  Celle  had  given 
leaked  out,  and  also  the  news  that  Duke  Antony  Ulrich 
and  his  son  were  coming  to  Celle  for  the  celebration  of  the 
Princess's  birthday  on  September  15.  Bernstorff  immedi- 


PRINCE  GEORGE  GOES  A-WOOING  45 

ately  communicated  this  to  the  court  of  Hanover.  The 
news  filled  Ernest  Augustus  and  his  advisers,  the  Platens, 
with  dismay  ;  they  had  been  intriguing  for  months,  and  now, 
through  a  sudden  move  on  the  part  of  the  Duchess  of  Celle, 
their  schemes  were  on  the  edge  of  failure.  If  Bernstorff  had 
not  discovered  the  plot  they  would  certainly  have  been  lost. 
In  any  case  the  time  for  talking  was  past,  the  time  for  action 
had  come  ;  Antony  Ulrich  and  the  young  Prince  were  actu- 
ally on  their  way  to  Celle,  and  Eleonore  was  arranging  a 
great  festival,  when  no  doubt  the  betrothal  would  be  pub- 
licly announced.  Then  it  would  be  too  late.  Owing  to  the 
badness  of  the  roads,  the  news  only  arrived  at  Hanover  on 
the  morning  of  the  day  before.  What  was  to  be  done  ?  If 
Ernest  Augustus  were  to  go  to  Celle,  Eleonore  would  guess 
the  reason  of  his  sudden  appearance  and  outwit  him.  To 
send  George  Louis  would  be  to  court  failure  (they  had  had 
two  experiences  of  his  diplomacy) ;  to  send  a  Minister  would 
be  useless  ;  to  send  Madame  Platen  an  insult.  There  was 
only  one  person  who  could  hope  to  carry  the  difficult  busi- 
ness through,  and  she  was  the  Duchess  Sophia.  She  had 
influence  with  the  Duke  of  Celle.  Her  quarrel  had  been 
with  his  wife  and  not  with  him.  He  had  always  treated 
her  with  honour  and  even  affection  ;  probably  he  felt  some 
twinge  of  shame  for  the  shabby  way  he  had  behaved  to  her 
years  before.  Her  descent  from  a  long  line  of  kings,  her 
high  position,  learning,  and  virtues,  her  wit  and  resource, 
all  made  her  the  ideal  ambassadress  for  such  a  mission. 
George  William  would  be  flattered  by  her  condescension 
in  coming  to  Celle  ;  he  was  seeking  an  excuse  to  bring 
about  the  match,  and  would  meet  her  half  way.  But 
would  she  go? 

It  was  not  without  misgiving  that  Ernest  Augustus  re- 
paired to  his  Duchess,  laid  bare  his  plan,  and  implored  her 
aid.  It  came  to  her  as  a  revelation,  and  at  first  the  haughty 
Sophia  would  have  none  of  it.  She  hated  the  d'Olbreuse,  and 
despised  Sophie  Dorothea  because  she  was  her  daughter  ; 
she  had  never  recognised  them,  neve?  visited  them,  and 
always  treated  them  as  dirt  beneath  her  feet.  The  last 
thing  she  contemplated,  or  wished,  was  to  be  brought  into 
•closer  alliance  with  them.  It  did  not  come  to  her  altogether 
as  a  new  idea,  for  the  possibility  of  such  a  marriage  had  often 
been  discussed  before,  only  to  be  contemptuously  rejected 


46    THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

by  Sophia.  Five  years  before,  in  1677,  it  is  mentioned 
in  her  correspondence  with  the  Duchess  of  Orleans,  who 
profanely  denounced  it  as  a  "  sin  against  the  Holy  Ghost ". 
But  the  arguments  and  entreaties  of  Ernest  Augustus  had 
weight  with  her  ;  he  reminded  her  that  her  English  plan  had 
failed,  and  urged  that  she  should  make  some  compensation 
for  the  expense  and  disappointment  which  she  had  brought 
upon  him.  She  recognised  the  force  of  this  reasoning  ;  she 
was  just  now  suffering  all  the  humiliations  of  defeat,  and  if 
she  could  carry  this  difficult  thing  through  it  would  restore 
her  lost  prestige.  She  knew  well  enough — it  did  not  need 
to  be  explained  to  her — the  substantial  advantages  that 
would  accrue  from  the  union  of  the  duchies  and  the  bringing 
of  a  large  dowry  into  the  coffers  of  Hanover.  She  saw,  too, 
how  disastrous  it  would  be  for  the  Celle-Wolfenbiittel  party 
to  triumph  and  Eleonore  to  be  victorious.  The  last  thought 
was  perhaps  the  most  powerful  of  all ;  by  consenting  to  go 
to  Celle  she  would  outwit  her  rival,  wound  her  to  the  heart, 
frustrate  her  most  cherished  plan,  and  ruin  her  influence  for 
ever.  So  Sophia  consented  to  undertake  the  mission,  and, 
with  characteristic  energy,  prepared  to  start  at  once.  The 
state  chariot  and  Mecklenburg  horses  were  ordered  out,  and 
with  postillions  and  outriders  the  haughty  Duchess  set  forth. 
There  was  no  time  to  be  lost ;  she  must  reach  Celle  before 
to-morrow  morning  or  the  Wolfenbuttels  would  be  there 
before  her. 

It  was  a  dull  evening  in  mid-September  when  Sophia 
rumbled  in  her  heavy  coach  out  of  Hanover  and  over  the 
rough  road  towards  Celle.  Celle  is  distant  from  Hanover 
about  twenty  miles  as  the  crow  flies  ;  but  because  of  heavy 
rains  many  of  the  roads  were  impassable,  and  the  coach  had 
to  travel  by  a  circuitous  route.  It  took  the  Duchess  all  night 
to  reach  her  journey's  end. 


CHAPTER  V. 

THE    SACRIFICE. 

(1682.) 

After  this  alliance 

Let  tigers  match  with  hinds,  and  wolves  with  sheep, 
And  every  creature  couple  with  its  foe. 

DRYDEN. 

THE  mists  of  a  raw  September  morning  hung  about  Celle 
as  the  Duchess  Sophia  drove  in  from  the  Hanover  road, 
stiff  and  cold  from  her  long  journey.  One  wonders  what 
thoughts  crowded  into  her  brain  as  the  coach  rattled  through 
the  quaint  streets  of  the  little  town.  She  had  not  been  here 
for  seventeen  years,  never  since  Eleonore  had  queened  it  at 
the  castle,  and  she  had  come  to-day  to  disqueen  her,  by 
destroying  her  influence  and  bringing  to  naught  her  most 
cherished  scheme.  Yet  she  would  have  to  make  peace 
with  her,  turn  to  her  a  smiling  face,  and  enter  into  close 
and  intimate  relations  with  the  woman  she  hated,  insulted, 
and  despised.  It  must  have  been  with  mingled  feelings 
that  Sophia  saw  the  towers  of  the  mighty  schloss  rise  before 
her. 

The  sleepy  sentinel,  recognising  the  unaccustomed 
liveries  of  Hanover,  hurried  to  let  down  the  drawbridge, 
raise  the  portcullis,  and  salute  the  great  Duchess.  The 
moment  the  coach  entered  the  courtyard  Sophia  alighted. 
A  glance  sufficed  to  show  her  she  was  not  too  late,  the 
Wolfenbiittel  equipage  was  not  yet  there.  Brushing  aside 
ceremony,  she,  who  was  so  great  a  stickler  for  etiquette, 
demanded  to  see  the  Duke  of  Celle  at  once.  The  few  half- 
awakened  servants  who  happened  to  be  up  as  she  entered 
the  castle,  astonished  at  the  unexpected  apparition,  ex- 
plained to  her  that  His  Highness  had  not  yet  risen,  he  was 
even  now  dressing,  but  would  soon  be  able  to  descend  and 
receive  her  in  a  fitting  manner.  But  Sophia  was  in  no 

47 


48    THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

humour  to  tarry ;  ascending  the  great  staircase,  she  haughtily 
demanded  to  be  shown  at  once  to  the  Duke's  chamber,  in 
bed  or  out  of  bed,  dressed  or  undressed,  her  business  was 
one  which  would  admit  of  no  delay.  The  flurried  page 
conducted  her  to  the  door  of  the  ducal  apartment,  and  here 
she  ordered  him  to  leave,  and  announced  herself  by  promptly 
opening  the  door  and  walking  in  upon  the  astonished  Duke, 
who  was  then  at  his  dressing-table. 

Of  all  people  in  the  world,  his  sister-in-law  was  the  one 
George  William  least  expected  to  see ;  but  Sophia  cut 
short  his  exclamations  and  apologies  by  announcing  that 
she  had  travelled  all  night  to  present  in  person  her  con- 
gratulations to  himself  and  his  Duchess  on  the  occasion  of 
the  sixteenth  birthday  of  their  daughter,  and  wound  up  by 
asking  curtly,  "  Where  is  your  wife  ?  "  The  Duke  pointed 
to  the  half-open  door  of  the  bedchamber  adjoining,  where 
Eleonore  was  still  in  bed — a  capacious  bed  in  a  com- 
paratively small  room  with  the  ceiling  decorated  with  a 
realistic  fresco  of  the  legend  of  Leda  and  the  Swan.1  Eleo- 
nore, hearing  voices,  called  out  to  her  husband  to  ask  who 
came  thus  early  to  disturb  their  rest.  The  Duchess  Sophia, 
through  the  half-open  door,  repeated  in  a  loud  voice  what 
she  had  already  said  to  the  Duke,  thus  breaking  the  ice  of 
the  awkward  first  greeting  with  her  enemy,  and,  without 
waiting  to  hear  what  the  perturbed  Eleonore  had  to  say  in 
reply,  she  turned  to  the  Duke,  and,  addressing  him  in  Low 
Dutch,  a  language  she  knew  his  wife  did  not  understand, 
she  intimated  that  she  had  something  important  to  say  to 
him  alone.  George  William  glanced  meaningly  at  the  half- 
open  door,  behind  which  was  the  flurried  Eleonore,  and 
suggested  they  should  wait  a  little  while  and  discuss  the 
matter  elsewhere.  But  Sophia  cut  short  his  excuses  and 
proposals  by  answering  that  what  she  had  to  say  must  be 
said  there  and  then.  She  could  not  be  so  rude  as  to  shut 
the  door  in  Eleonore's  face,  so  she  drew  up  a  chair  by  the 
Duke's  dressing-table,  and,  continuing  to  speak  in  Low 
Dutch,  proceeded  to  unfold  her  scheme — first  exacting  from 
him  a  promise  that,  if  he  did  not  accede  to  her  wishes,  he 
was  never  to  divulge  a  syllable  of  what  she  had  come  to 
say. 

1  The  room  remains  the  same  to  this  day. 


THE  SACRIFICE  49 

In  a  few  vigorous  sentences  she  skilfully  explained  the 
real  object  of  her  visit.  She  began  by  deploring  the  family 
feud  which  had  too  long  existed  between  the  courts  of 
Hanover  and  Celle,  and  expatiated  upon  the  desirability  of 
reconciliation  and  the  advantages  which  would  inevitably 
follow  a  closer  union.  George  William,  who  by  this  time 
had  made  a  shrewd  guess  at  what  she  was  driving,  followed 
her  with  many  encouraging  nods  and  ejaculations,  and  when 
the  uneasy  Eleonore  from  the  next  room  called  out  that  she 
would  like  to  know  the  subject  of  the  conversation,  he  bade 
her  roughly  to  be  quiet,  and  invited  Sophia  to  proceed. 
That  lady  then  touched  upon  the  services  which  had  been 
rendered  to  the  Emperor  by  the  troops  of  Hanover  and  Celle, 
and  hinted  at  the  probable  raising  of  the  duchy  to  an  elec- 
torate ;  she  did  not  say  which  duchy,  but  George  William 
thought  it  was  the  duchy  of  Celle,  whereas  she  had  in  her 
mind  (and  her  surmise  eventually  proved  correct)  the  ac- 
cession of  the  duchy  of  Hanover  to  this  coveted  dignity. 
She  went  on  to  say  that  sooner  or  later  there  would  be  an 
addition  of  territory  in  the  shape  of  the  duchies  of  Bremen 
and  Verden,1  declared  it  would  be  a  pity  if  a  fine  domain 
like  Wilhelmsburg,  Sophie  Dorothea's  inheritance,  should 
be  alienated  from  Brunswick- Liineburg  territory,  and  then 
by  a  natural  sequence  proceeded  to  show  that  all  evils  could 
be  averted  and  all  good  things  brought  about  by  the  marriage 
of  her  son  George  Louis  with  George  William's  daughter, 
Sophie  Dorothea.  George  Louis  she  described  in  glowing 
terms ;  she  alluded  to  his  high  favour  with  William  of 
Orange,  and  his  connection,  through  her,- with  the  Royal 
House  of  England,  which  assured  him  the  good-will  of  that 
great  Power. 

George  William  was  completely  carried  away  by  the 
eloquence  and  arguments  of  his  illustrious  sister-in-law. 
No  one,  he  told  her,  could  regret  more  than  he  the  breach 
between  the  two  Houses,  it  was  not  his  doing,  and  he  was 
glad  of  an  opportunity  of  reconciliation.  He  saw  clearly 
the  advantages  that  would  follow  upon  the  marriage  pro- 
posed, and  he  promised  his  consent.  He  did  not  need 
much  persuasion,  he  only  wanted  the  excuse  of  meeting  the 
proposal  which  her  visit  gave  him,  for  the  marriage  had  been 

'This  did  not  actually  take  place  until  the  reign  of  George  I. 

4 


5o    THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

the  secret  desire  of  his  heart  for  years.  With  the  warmest 
assurances  of  friendship  he  kissed  Sophia's  hand,  and  then 
escorted  her  to  a  suite  of  apartments  to  rest  after  her  journey.1 
The  anxious  Eleonore,  who  by  this  time  was  up  and 
dressed,  was  waiting  for  her  husband  on  his  return,  and 
asked  for  an  explanation  of  this  unexpected  visit.  He 
gave  it  promptly,  and  added  the  unwelcome  intelligence 
that  he  had  consented  to  an  alliance  between  George  Louis 
and  Sophie  Dorothea.  Eleonore  was  at  first  stunned  by 
this  blow  to  her  hopes  on  the  very  morning  of  expected 
victory.  The  alliance  she  had  laboured  for  years  to  bring 
about  with  the  House  of  Brunswick- Wolfenbuttel  was  shat- 
tered to  the  dust,  and  the  woman  who  had  slighted  and 
scorned  her  had  only  to  propose  an  opposition  scheme  for 
it  to  be  accepted.  In  vain  she  urged  upon  the  Duke  the 
insult  such  a  volte-face  would  be  to  Duke  Antony  Ulrich 
and  his  son.  George  William  answered  testily  that  he  had 
given  nothing  but  a  conditional  promise.  In  vain  she 
pointed  out  the  hostility  and  self-seeking  policy  of  the 
House  of  Hanover.  George  William  said  he  was  tired  of 
family  quarrels,  and  hailed  this  as  a  means  of  putting  an 
end  to  them.  He  then  proceeded  to  dilate  upon  the  ad- 
vantages of  the  union,  and  the  advisability  of  Eleonore 
reconciling  herself  to  the  new  state  of  affairs  and  burying 
the  hatchet.  But  Eleonore,  to  her  honour  be  it  said,  was 

unlike  her  husband  in  this — she  was  deaf  to  the  voice  of 

• 

1 1  have  been  taken  to  task  by  eminent  critics  for  accepting,  on  the 
authority  of  the  Roman  Octavia,  the  night  journey  of  the  Duchess  Sophia  to 
Celle,  and  the  discomfiture  of  Duke  Antony  Ulrich  and  his  son.  But  I  would 
in  all  humility  point  out  that  the  Roman  Octavia  was  written  by  Duke  Antony 
Ulrich  himself,  and  published  within  the  life-time  of  nearly  all  the  parties 
concerned.  Though  the  form  in  which  it  is  written,  a  dramatic  dialogue  with 
the  personages  disguised  under  fictitious  names,  precludes  absolute  accuracy, 
yet  it  is  generally  admitted  that  the  narrative  closely  followed  in  many  re- 
spects what  actually  happened.  The  Duchess  Sophia  read  the  Roman  Octavia 
when  it  appeared,  but  we  do  not  find  any  record  that  she  contradicted  Antony 
Ulrich's  version  of  the  part  she  played  in  bringing  about  the  marriage.  The 
Duchess  of  Orleans,  writing  to  her  aunt  of  Antony  Ulrich's  book,  says:  "  In 
all  matters  his  truth  is  mixed  with  a  modicum  of  lies,"  and  she  proceeds  to 
criticise  it  in  detail,  but  she  says  nothing  about  this  incident.  If  it  were  un- 
true we  should  expect  to  find  Sophia  denouncing  it  with  her  customary  vigour  ; 
but  she  was  probably  ashamed  of  the  part  she  had  played  and  so  passed  it  by 
in  silence,  tacitly  admitting  its  truth.  Dr.  Kocher  has  clearly  shown  that 
negotiations  for  the  marriage  had  been  going  on  between  the  two  courts  for 
years  more  or  less  definitely,  but  I  do  not  see  that  this  affects  the  truth  of 
Antony  Ulrich's  version  of  the  action  which  Sophia  took  at  the  last. 


THE  SACRIFICE  51 

ambition  where  her  heart  was  concerned.  The  failure  of 
her  cherished  plans  was  bad  enough,  but  it  was  as  nothing 
compared  with  the  wreck  of  her  daughter's  happiness. 
She  threw  herself  on  her  knees  before  her  husband,  and 
implored  him,  with  tears,  not  to  sacrifice  their  only  child, 
the  one  pledge  of  their  love,  to  the  promptings  of  policy 
and  ambition,  and  doom  her  to  the  misery  of  a  loveless 
marriage  ;  she  reminded  him  of  the  tales  that  had  reached 
Celle  of  George  Louis's  sullen  and  profligate  character,  and 
of  the  hatred  with  which  the  House  of  Hanover  had  ever 
viewed  her  daughter  and  herself.  It  was  like  throwing  their 
lamb  to  the  wolves.  But  George  William  was  obdurate  ; 
he  pooh-poohed  all  these  things  as  idle  fancies,  and  again 
told  his  wife  to  reconcile  herself  with  the  altered  state  of 
affairs,  and,  deaf  to  her  entreaties,  he  bade  her  go  and 
acquaint  Sophie  Dorothea  with  the  plans  he  had  made  for 
her  future.  With  a  heavy  heart  the  mother  went  to  break 
the  news  to  her  daughter,  a  sad  greeting  for  a  birthday 
morning. 

The  young  Princess  had  not  been  trained  to  control  her 
emotions  nor  to  having  her  will  thwarted.  The  spoiled 
darling  of  her  father's  affections,  she  had  hitherto  only  to 
wish  for  a  thing  and  it  was  hers,  and  her  wishes  had  been 
law  at  Celle.  When,  therefore,  she  was  told  it  was  proposed 
to  hand  her  over  to  a  man  she  had  scarcely  seen,  and  whom 
she  had  been  taught  to  despise,  without  consulting  her 
wishes  in  any  way,  she  flew  into  a  violent  passion,  and 
vowed  she  would  have  to  be  dragged  to  the  altar  before 
she  consented.  Her  heart  was  free,  for,  though  she  was 
well  disposed  towards  the  young  Prince  of  Wolfenbiittel, 
she  had  not  yet  learned  to  love  him,  and,  though  romance 
has  it  otherwise,  there  is  no  proof  that  the  boy  and  girl  love 
between  herself  and  Konigsmarck  had  made  much  impres- 
sion upon  her.  But  she  was  by  no  means  favourably 
disposed  towards  George  Louis.  She  had  heard  of  his 
loutish  manners  and  his  loose  morals.  Her  mother  had 
taught  her  from  her  youth  up  to  regard  the  Duchess  Sophia 
and  her  son  as  her  greatest  enemies.  She  knew  how  they 
had  insulted  her  mother  and  what  degrading  epithets  they 
had  applied  to  herself,  and  the  news  that  she  was  about  to 
be  handed  over  to  their  tender  mercies  filled  her  with  con- 
sternation and  grief.  After  the  first  outburst  her  emotion 

4* 


52    THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

found  relief  in  tears,  and  she  clung  to  her  mother,  and 
besought  her  to  save  her  from  such  a  fate.  Poor  Eleonore, 
who  was  powerless,  could  only  mingle  her  tears  with  her 
daughter's. 

While  this  scene  was  being  enacted  in  one  wing  of  the 
castle,  in  another  the  Duchess  Sophia  and  George  William 
sat  down  and  despatched  a  hearty  breakfast.  Sophia,  de- 
lighted with  the  success  of  her  mission,  spared  no  pains  to 
make  herself  agreeable  and  to  flatter  George  William  to  the 
top  of  his  bent ;  she  was  also  pleased  to  be  gracious  to 
Bernstorff,  who  had  heard  of  the  morning's  work,  and  who, 
on  his  part,  did  everything  he  could  to  bolster  up  the  Duke 
in  his  determination.  A  mounted  messenger  had  already 
been  despatched  to  carry  the  good  news  to  Hanover,  and 
to  bid  Duke  Ernest  Augustus  and  Prince  George  Louis 
come  to  Celle  with  all  speed. 

The  breakfast  was  hardly  over,  the  day  had  scarcely 
warmed,  when  the  trumpeter  on  the  tower  announced  the 
arrival  of  Duke  Antony  Ulrich  and  his  son.  They  came 
with  a  numerous  suite,  ostensibly  to  offer  their  congratula- 
tions on  the  anniversary  of  the  birthday  of  Sophie  Dorothea, 
in  reality  to  claim  the  fulfilment  of  her  father's  half  promise. 
The  sight  of  the  Duchess  Sophia's  coach  in  the  courtyard 
and  the  Hanoverian  liveries  filled  Antony  Ulrich  with 
suspicions  which  were  only  too  speedily  confirmed.  The 
young  Princess,  he  found,  was  too  much  perturbed  to  receive 
their  congratulations  in  person,  her  mother  was  shut  up 
with  her ;  but  the  Duke  of  Celle,  accompanied  by  the 
Duchess  Sophia,  received  the  Wolfenbuttel  princes  with 
much  ceremony,  and  without  ado  proceeded  to  inform  them 
of  the  news  of  the  betrothal  of  Sophie  Dorothea  to  George 
Louis,  and  by  way  of  adding  insult  to  injury  invited  them 
to  remain  to  the  birthday  feast,  when  the  betrothal  would 
be  announced.  Duke  Antony  Ulrich,  mastering  his  indig- 
nation with  an  effort,  was  so  much  insulted  at  this  shameless 
right-about-face  that,  ignoring  the  invitation,  he  at  once 
returned  to  his  coach,  accompanied  by  his  son,  and  shook 
the  dust  of  Celle  off  his  feet.  It  is  difficult  to  call  such  a 
retreat  dignified,  yet  he  seems  to  have  made  it  so,  though 
he  left  the  Duchess  Sophia  in  possession  of  the  field. 

George  William,  having  got  rid  of  his  unwelcome  guests, 
proceeded  to  the  apartments  of  Sophie  Dorothea  on  the 


THE  SACRIFICE  53 

troublesome  errand  of  persuading  his  refractory  daughter  to 
put  in  an  appearance  and  pay  her  respects  to  her  aunt.  He 
took  with  him  a  birthday  present  and  a  message  of  con- 
gratulation from  the  Duchess  Sophia.  The  apartments  of 
Sophie  Dorothea  consisted  of  three  rooms  leading  from  one 
another ;  the  work-room  or  school-room,  with  two  large 
windows  overlooking  the  lime-trees  on  to  the  moat,  the 
parlour,  somewhat  elaborately  decorated,  and  the  sleeping- 
room,  with  the  bed  in  an  alcove,  and  the  superb  carved 
mantelpiece,  supported  by  four  cupids.  These  rooms  Sophie 
Dorothea  had  occupied  from  her  infancy,  and  her  work  and 
all  her  little  treasures  were  scattered  about.  The  Duke's 
resolution  did  not  waver,  though  he  found  his  daughter 
lying  on  the  bed  in  a  passion  of  grief,  her  mother  by  her 
side  entreating  her  to  be  calm.  Apparently  her  persuasions 
had  not,  so  far,  had  much  effect,  for  the  temper  with  which 
Sophie  Dorothea  received  her  father  may  be  gathered  from 
the  fact  that  when  he  gave  her  the  Duchess  Sophia's  present, 
a  miniature  of  George  Louis  set  in  diamonds,  she  threw  it 
from  her  with  such  violence  that  it  was  shattered  against 
the  wall,  and  the  precious  stones  fell  all  about  the  room. 

Her  father  began  to  threaten  and  storm  and  reproach 
her  mother  for  encouraging  their  daughter  in  this  insubor- 
dination. Parental  authority  had  its  weight  with  even  the 
most  self-willed  young  Princess  in  those  days,  and  the  result 
of  the  combination  of  her  father's  threats  and  her  mother's 
entreaties  was  that  Sophie  Dorothea  gradually  became 
calmer,  and  was  coaxed,  or  forced,  into  getting  up  and 
dressing  herself,  and  consented  to  be  presented  to  her  aunt 
Sophia  in  a  proper  manner.  She  had  also  to  go  through 
the  ordeal  of  receiving  the  birthday  congratulations  of  the 
court  and  of  appearing  at  the  banquet,  when  her  betrothal 
was  announced  ;  but  her  tear-stained  eyes  and  downcast 
looks,  no  less  than  her  mother's  pallor  and  dejection,  made 
it  evident  that  she  was  acting  under  compulsion,  and  evoked 
the  pity  rather  than  the  congratulations  of  the  court  of  Celle. 
Perhaps  the  Duchess  Sophia  found  in  the  tears  of  Eleonore 
and  her  daughter  some  consolation  for  the  humiliation  she 
underwent  in  thus  recognising  and  meeting  them  for  the 
first  time  as  equals. 

The  next  day  Ernest  Augustus  and  George  Louis  arrived 
from  Hanover.  Ernest  Augustus  was  radiant,  but  George 


54    THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

Louis  was  even  more  sullen  than  his  wont.  The  beginning 
of  the  wooing  was  not  promising.  The  young  Princess 
fainted  in  her  mother's  arms  when  she  was  presented  to  her 
future  husband.  Her  dislike  was  quite  reciprocated  by 
George  Louis,  who,  though  willing  to  go  through  the  affair 
for  the  sake  of  the  money,  had  been  trained  to  have  nothing 
but  contempt  for  "  Madame "  of  Celle  and  her  daughter. 
His  manners  at  the  best  were  not  prepossessing,  and  in  this 
case  he  did  not  even  take  the  trouble  to  make  himself  agree- 
able to  his  future  bride.  The  elders  did  all  the  smiles  and 
congratulations ;  the  principals  in  the  contract  rendered 
nothing  but  an  outward  acquiescence,  sulky  on  his  side, 
and  rebellious  on  hers. 

Yet,  looking  at  it  from  quite  the  outside  point  of  view, 
if  George  Louis  had  sought  all  over  Europe  he  would 
hardly  have  found  a  more  suitable  match  than  this,  and 
he  certainly  could  not  have  found  a  more  charming  bride 
than  his  princess  cousin.  Sophie  Dorothea  had  grown  to 
great  beauty.  She  was  a  brunette,  with  dark  brown,  almost 
black  hair,  large  velvety  eyes,  regular  features,  brilliant  com- 
plexion, and  the  veriest  little  red  rosebud  of  a  mouth.  Her 
figure  was  perfectly  proportioned  :  she  had  an  exquisite 
neck  and  bust,  and  slender  little  hands  and  feet.  She 
had  nothing  in  common  with  the  large-waisted,  flat-footed 
German  princesses  of  the  period  ;  she  resembled  her  mother, 
and,  like  her,  was  essentially  "  the  Frenchwoman,"  not  only 
in  appearance,  but  in  manners,  dress,  and  conversation. 
She  had  the  Frenchwoman's  instinctive  dislike  to  anything 
coarse  or  unrefined,  and  she  excelled  in  all  the  accomplish- 
ments of  the  time  ;  her  dancing  was  perfect,  she  was  a 
skilled  musician,  she  was  clever  with  her  needle,  and  could 
express  herself  gracefully  in  writing.  Her  conversation  was 
sprightly,  she  was  full  of  wit  and  repartee,  and  her  ready 
tongue,  it  may  be  feared,  often  led  her  into  trouble.  She 
had  the  Frenchwoman's  emotional  temperament,  she  was 
easily  depressed  and  easily  elated,  and  was  capable  of 
strong  and  unreasoning  passion.  But  her  instincts  were 
always  generous,  and  she  was  absolutely  free  from  mean- 
ness in  thought,  word,  or  deed. 

Such  a  disposition  united  to  a  good  and  wise  husband 
might  have  been  trained  into  a  fine  and  noble  nature.  As 
it  was,  no  man  could  have  been  found  more  unsuitable  to 


THE  SACRIFICE  55 

her  than  George  Louis ;  their  temperaments  were  totally 
dissimilar,  it  was  like  the  union  of  cold  and  heat,  of  ice 
and  fire.  George  Louis  had  his  good  qualities,  too,  though 
somewhat  latent,  and  a  tactful  and  sympathetic  wife  might 
have  developed  them.  Poor  Sophie  Dorothea  never  even 
found  them,  much  less  developed  them.  How  could  she? 
She  and  George  Louis  were  utterly  unsympathetic,  and 
when  two  antagonistic  chemicals  are  mixed  there  is  sure 
to  be  an  explosion  sooner  or  later.  But  the  hearts  and 
inclinations  of  the  young  couple  were  the  last  things  the 
parents,  except  Eleonore,  thought  of  in  connection  with 
them. 

George  William  was  delighted  to  play  the  host  again  to 
his  favourite  brother  and  his  respected  sister-in-law.  The 
betrothal  was  announced  with  much  pomp.  There  were 
great  feasts  at  Celle,  and  every  one  came  to  congratulate. 
All  the  neighbouring  princes,  with  the  exception  of  Bruns- 
wick-Wolfenbiittel,  and  all  the  great  officers  of  both  duchies, 
were  delighted  at  the  betrothal.  Indeed,  the  advantages 
seemed  many  and  obvious,  and  Eleonore,  seeing  how 
strongly  the  tide  of  popular  feeling  was  against  her,  to 
say  nothing  of  George  William's  obstinacy,  had  perforce 
to  give  way,  hide  her  mortification  as  best  she  could,  and 
counsel  her  daughter  to  submission  to  the  will  of  her  father. 
It  was  not  an  easy  task,  for  Sophie  Dorothea  had  a  will  and 
temper  of  her  own,  but  she  was  brought  to  some  show  of 
outward  complaisance,  and  induced  to  passively  receive  the 
congratulations  of  the  court  and  the  unwilling  wooing  of  her 
betrothed. 

George  William,  Ernest  Augustus,  and  Sophia  agreed 
that,  as  there  was  no  reason  for  delay,  the  marriage  should 
be  celebrated  as  soon  as  the  necessary  formalities  and 
settlements  were  completed.  Platen  and  Bernstorff  were 
called  in  to  help  and  advise,  and  lengthy  deeds  were  drawn 
up.  Eleonore  seems  to  have  been  too  heartsick  to  interfere, 
or  perhaps  she  was  powerless,  for  in  the  marriage  settlement 
Ernest  Augustus  and  Sophia  had  everything  their  own  way, 
and  Sophie  Dorothea's  interests,  apart  from  her  husband 
and  prospective  children,  were  scarcely  studied.  George 
William  was  in  so  complaisant  a  mood  that  the  Duke  and 
Duchess  of  Hanover  could  ask  almost  what  they  liked. 
He  settled  to  give  his  daughter  one  hundred  thousand 


56    THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

thalers  a  year,  which  meant  that  he  handed  it  all  over  to 
the  exchequer  of  Hanover.  The  estates  he  had  settled  on 
her  were  also  made  over,  except  in  the  case  of  certain 
unlikely  contingencies,  such  as  the  death  of  George  Louis 
before  his  wife.  If  the  Princess  were  left  a  widow,  she  was 
to  be  entitled  to  a  dower  of  twelve  thousand  thalers  a  year. 
But  the  whole  gist  of  the  settlement  was  that  the  Princess, 
apart  from  her  husband  and  her  children,  had  no  money  of 
her  own  and  no  settlement  in  the  modern  sense  of  the  term. 
Of  course,  she  would  be  given  enough  to  maintain  herself 
in  proper  state  as  Princess  of  Hanover ;  but  her  money 
depended  entirely  on  the  good-will  of  her  husband  and 
what  her  parents  chose  to  give  her  from  time  to  time  ;  she 
had  literally  not  a  penny  which  she  could  call  her  own. 
Her  position  was  much  that  of  a  married  woman  in  Eng- 
land before  the  passing  of  the  Married  Woman's  Property 
Act.  The  point  is  important  in  view  of  future  developments. 
One  stipulation  the  Duchess  Eleonore  was  able  to 
enforce  before  the  marriage  contract  was  signed :  George 
Louis's  intrigue  with  Madame  Bussche  was  a  matter  of 
common  notoriety,  and  she  insisted  that  it  should  be  broken 
off  and  the  mistress  sent  away  from  Hanover.  This  very 
reasonable  request  was  supposed  to  be  very  unreasonable, 
but  Eleonore  was  firm.  Sophie  Dorothea  had  not  yet 
notified  her  consent  in  writing,  and  people  were  beginning 
to  comment  on  her  downcast  looks.  The  Duke  of  Celle 
did  not  wish  it  to  appear  that  she  was  forced  into  an  un- 
willing marriage,  and  to  humour  her  and  her  mother  it  was 
promised  that  Madame  Bussche  should  be  sent  away.  The 
Duchess  Sophia  went  back  to  Hanover  to  see  the  business 
carried  through.  In  return  for  this  concession  Sophie 
Dorothea  was  induced  to  write  the  following  letter  to  her 
aunt  ;  it  was  merely  a  formal  letter,  probably  dictated  in 
substance  and  simply  copied  by  her.  Reading  between  the 
lines,  we  can  see  the  mute  protest  that  runs  through  it. 

"  MADAME, 

"  I  have  so  much  respect  for  my  lord  the  Duke  your 
husband,  and  for  my  lord  my  own  father,  that  in  whatever 
manner  they  may  act  on  my  behalf  I  shall  always  be  very 
content.  Your  Highness  will  do  me,  I  know,  the  justice  to 
believe  that  no  one  can  be  more  sensible  than  I  am  of  the 


v-    N^.  ^T)u  v  5    y 
I   \  \.iV^\vv 


THE    ELECTRESS    SOPHIA. 

Photographed  from  the  statue  in  the  gardens  of  Herrenhausen. 


THE  SACRIFICE  57 

many  marks  of  your  goodness.  I  will  carefully  endeavour 
all  my  life  long  to  deserve  the  same,  and  to  make  it  evident 
to  Your  Highness  by  my  respect  and  yery  humble  service 
that  you  could  not  choose  as  a  daughter  one  who  knows 
better  than  myself  how  to  pay  to  you  what  is  due.  In 
which  duty  I  shall  feel  very  great  pleasure,  and  also  in 
showing  you  by  my  submission  that  I  am, 

"  Madame, 

"  Your  Highness's  very  humble 
"  And  very  obedient  servant, 
"  SOPHIE  DOROTHEA. 

"Ar  CELLE,  October  21,  1682." 

The  Duchess  Sophia  probably  found  in  this  letter  and 
in  the  tears  and  anguish  of  Eleonore  and  her  daughter 
some  compensation  for  the  effort  it  cost  her  to  make  the 
visit  to  Celle.  Of  her  part  in  the  betrothal  she  was  probably 
ashamed,  for  we  find  her  making  no  mention  in  her  letters 
to  the  Duchess  of  Orleans  of  her  journey  to  Celle,  but  con- 
cerning the  marriage  she  wrote  as  follows  : — 

"  Ernest  Augustus  always  had  a  queer  head,  and  how 
such  an  idea  could  have  entered  it  passes  all  my  under- 
standing. However,  one  hundred  thousand  thalers  a  year 
is  a  goodly  sum  to  pocket,  without  speaking  of  a  pretty 
wife,  who  will  find  a  match  in  my  son  George  Louis,  the 
most  pigheaded,  stubborn  boy  who  ever  lived,  and  who  has 
round  his  brains  such  a  thick  crust  that  I  defy  any  man  or 
woman  ever  to  discover  what  is  in  them.  He  does  not  care 
much  for  the  match  itself,  but  one  hundred  thousand  thalers 
a  year  have  tempted  him  as  they  would  have  tempted  any- 
body else." 

The  marriage  contract  was  signed  at  Celle  by  Ernest 
Augustus  and  George  Louis  on  the  one  part  and  George 
William  and  Sophie  Dorothea  on  the  other ;  thus  the 
Princess  was  induced  to  sign  away  not  only  her  liberty,  but 
her  fortune,  and  she  became  soul  and  body  the  property 
of  George  Louis.  The  Duchess  Sophia  came  back  from 
Hanover  to  be  present  at  the  wedding,  which  was  hurried 
forward  with  all  speed.  Great  preparations  were  made  for 
it,  and  costly  presents  and  congratulations  poured  in  from 
all  sides. 

The  wedding  was  celebrated  in  the  private  chapel  of  the 


58    THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

castle  of  Celle,  according  to  the  Lutheran  rites,  on  November 
21,  1682,  with  every  circumstance  of  pomp  and  ceremony. 
The  town  was  gaily  decorated,  the  castle  was  thronged  with 
distinguished  guests  ;  there  had  never  been  such  a  wedding 
at  Celle  before.  The  beautiful  little  chapel,  brilliantly  illu- 
minated and  bedecked  with  flowers,  presented  a  scene  of 
unusual  splendour.  There  were  the  bride's  procession  and 
the  bridegroom's  procession,  and  the  procession  of  the 
parents,  and  the  court  chroniclers  exhausted  themselves  in 
describing  the  beauty  of  the  bride,  the  list  of  her  jewels, 
the  richness  of  her  attire.  The  bridegroom  was  scarcely 
less  bravely  arrayed.  Outwardly  all  was  fair  ;  but  within, 
beneath  this  brave  show,  what  horror,  what  anguish,  what 
base  and  ignoble  passions  !  There  was  the  Duchess  Sophia, 
exulting  over  the  downfall  of  her  enemies,  yet  with  a  spice 
of  bitterness  in  her  cup  ;  her  husband,  the  wily  and  covet- 
ous Ernest  Augustus  ;  the  weak-minded  George  William  ; 
the  sad  and  anxious  mother,  who  could  scarcely  restrain 
her  tears ;  the  bridegroom  muttering  the  unwilling  words, 
while  all  the  time  his  heart  was  with  his  banished  mistress ; 
the  child  bride,  she  was  little  more  than  a  child,  pale  and 
unresponsive,  sacrificed  like  another  Iphigenia.  The  omens 
were  unpropitious  :  there  was  no  sunshine  for  the  bride ; 
the  morning  dawned  dark  and  gloomy,  and  during  the 
ceremony  a  furious  storm  broke  over  Celle,  and  the  wind 
shrieked  and  raged,  shaking  the  castle  walls.  But  dark 
and  gloomy  though  the  day  was,  it  was  not  so  dark  and 
gloomy  as  the  bride's  heart ;  and  fierce  though  the  tempest, 
it  was  not  half  so  fierce  as  the  passions  which  raged  in  the 
breasts  of  the  little  group  around  the  altar.  There  we're 
priests  and  prayers  and  benedictions,  all  the  pomp  of 
heraldry  and  the  pageantry  of  courts ;  yet  when  all  was 
stripped  away  this  marriage  was  nothing  but  a  shameless 
bargain,  and  a  young  girl's  life  was  sold  to  a  man  steeped 
in  selfishness  and  profligacy  and  who  did  not  even  make 
a  pretext  of  loving  her.  When  we  are  tempted  to  pass 
judgment  on  all  that  happened  after,  we  must  remember 
that  the  bride's  vows  were  made  half  in  ignorance,  wholly 
under  protest.  The  outward  form  was  there,  the  words 
were  spoken  ;  but  Love,  who  hallows  the  sacrament,  was 
far  away,  and  shuddering  hid  his  holy  face. 


CHAPTER  VI. 

THE  COURT  OF  HANOVER. 

(1682-1684.) 

The  court's  a  golden  but  a  fatal  circle, 
Upon  whose  magic  skirts  a  thousand  devils 
In  crystal  forms  sit  tempting  innocence, 
And  beckon  early  virtue  from  its  centre. 

LEE. 

THERE  were  great  rejoicings  at  Hanover  in  honour  of  the 
home-coming  of  the  youthful  pair.  The  marriage  was 
exceedingly  popular  among  all  classes,  and  the  people  vied 
with  the  court  and  nobility  in  celebrating  an  event  which 
was  to  contribute  so  materially  to  the  prosperity  of  the 
duchy.  George  Louis  and  Sophie  Dorothea  entered  Han- 
over in  a  state  coach  drawn  by  six  cream-coloured  horses 
and  preceded  by  a  military  escort,  and  passed  in  procession 
through  the  decorated  streets  and  shouting  multitudes  to 
the  Alte  Palais  (the  old  palace),  where  they  were  to  take 
up  their  abode.  Sophie  Dorothea's  parting  from  the  home 
of  her  childhood  had  been  sad,  but  her  welcome  to  Hanover 
was  a  warm  one,  and  she  forgot  her  sadness  in  the  general 
rejoicing.  Yet  a  shadow  fell  across  the  bride's  path  on  the 
very  threshold  of  her  new  home.  Madame  Bussche,  though 
under  orders  to  quit,  had  not  yet  left  Hanover,  but  had  the 
audacity  to  appear  with  her  sister,  Madame  Platen,  at  an 
upper  window  of  the  palace.  Tradition  says  that  as  George 
Louis  was  helping  his  young  wife  to  alight,  she  looked  up 
by  chance,  and  saw  this  Jezebel  at  the  window  with  her 
face  convulsed  with  hate.  Sophie  Dorothea  started  and 
turned  pale,  she  guessed  instinctively  who  it  was.  The 
Duchess  Sophia  noticed  her  too,  and  was  so  angry  her 
orders  had  been  disregarded  that  she  sent  an  imperative 
message  to  Madame  Bussche  to  leave  Hanover  that  very 
night.  Her  mandate  was  obeyed  ;  but  the  mischief  had 

59 


60    THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

been  done,  and  the  contretemps  was  an  ill  omen  for  the 
success  of  the  marriage. 

There  were  loyal  addresses  and  court  festivities,  balls, 
plays,  and  feastings  for  a  week  on  end  in  Hanover,  and  the 
bride  won  golden  opinions  by  her  beauty  and  grace.  The 
events  of  the  last  few  weeks  had  tamed  her  spirit,  and  she 
wore  an  air  of  timid  dignity  which,  joined  to  her  extreme 
youth,  touched  all  hearts  and  even  softened  at  first  some  of 
the  dislike  of  her  mother-in-law  and  some  of  the  roughness 
of  her  husband.  Ernest  Augustus  was  much  pleased  with 
Sophie  Dorothea,  and  stood  between  her  and  her  enemies. 
Unlike  his  wife,  he  had  no  prejudice  against  his  niece,  and 
he  never  could  resist  a  pretty  face.  Now  that  she  had 
come  to  him  as  his  daughter-in-law,  filling  his  coffers  with 
her  dowry,  and.  adding  to  the  brightness  of  his  court  with 
her  beauty,  he  was  exceedingly  well  disposed  towards  her. 
With  all  his  faults,  Ernest  Augustus  was  no  tyrant,  but 
on  the  whole  a  kind-hearted  man,  and  throughout  Sophie 
Dorothea's  married  life  at  Hanover  he  was  perhaps  her 
best  friend,  over-indulgent  in  some  things,  culpably  lax  in 
others,  but  without  the  malevolence  of  his  wife  or  the  cold 
brutality  of  his  son. 

To  the  girl  bride,  who  had  been  reared  under  her  parents' 
wing  in  quiet  little  Celle,  and  sheltered  from  the  knowledge 
of  evil,  the  court  of  Hanover,  with  its  meretricious  gaiety  and 
brilliance,  its  laxity  of  morals  and  profligacy  of  manners, 
must  have  seemed  like  another  world,  and  not  a  better  one. 
The  Hanover  l  to  which  Sophie  Dorothea  came  could  not 
boast  of  a  magnificent  schloss  like  Celle,  but  it  had  three 
palaces  instead  of  one.  There  was  the  Alte  Palais,  where  the 
young  Princess  lived  at  first,  an  unpretending  building  in  the 
centre  of  the  town  ;  across  the  street  was  the  Leine  Schloss, 
where  also  were  apartments  for  the  ducal  family,  a  larger 

1  Hanover  is  still  in  some  respects  the  same  as  it  was  in  the  time  of  Ernest 
Augustus  and  Sophia.  Until  the  beginning  of  Queen  Victoria's  reign,  it 
must  have  been  almost  exactly  the  same ;  but  the  divorce  from  the  English 
crown  which  then  ensued  made  a  difference,  and  the  expulsion  of  the  King 
of  Hanover,  in  1866,  brought  the  town  under  Prussian  rule,  and  resulted  in 
the  abolition  of  many  landmarks.  Under  the  iron  heel  of  Prussia,  Hanover  is 
losing  many  of  its  distinctive  features.  It  has  become  much  like  any  other 
modern  Prussian  city,  with  wide  streets,  huge  barracks,  and  enormous  and 
hideous  buildings,  vast  manufactories  and  breweries.  The  town  has  advanced 
in  prosperity,  but  has  lost  in  picturesqueness. 


THE  COURT  OF  HANOVER  61 

and  more  imposing  building,  used  for  state  functions  and 
entertainments;  and  half  an  hour's  drive  outside  Hanover 
lay  the  country  residence  of  Herrenhausen,  a  favourite 
retreat  of  the  Duchess  Sophia,  then  a  modest  place,  but 
which  she  later  rebuilt,  beautified,  and  enlarged.  To  this 
day  Herrenhausen  retains  its  charm.  Its  quaint,  formal 
gardens  with  interminable  hedges  of  clipped  hornbeam,  its 
colossal  fountains  and  monstrous  stucco  cupids,  its  orangery, 
terraces,  and  ornamental  water,  make  it  unlike  anything  else 
in  Europe.  No  wonder  the  first  two  Georges  were  so  fond 
of  it,  no  wonder  they  were  eager  to  run  away  from  gloomy 
London  to  the  delights  of  this  homely  little  schloss,  nestling 
in  the  midst  of  a  great  park  and  approached  from  the  outer 
world  by  a  long  avenue  of  limes.  When  we  have  seen 
Herrenhausen  we  can  understand  the  heimweh  of  the 
earlier  Georges,  and  their  regret  at  leaving  the  cosy  delights 
of  their  snug  little  principality  to  take  up  the  uneasy  crown 
of  England. 

At  the  court  of  Celle  there  was  a  comparatively  modest 
retinue,  few  festivities,  and  little  pomp  of  state.  Hanover, 
modelled  on  Versailles,  maintained  a  court  out  of  all  pro- 
portion to  the  importance  of  the  duchy.  The  Duchess 
Sophia,  who  was  a  strict  upholder  of  dignity,  established  in 
it  rigid  rules  of  place  and  precedence,  and  no  herald's  table 
was  ever  classed  more  strictly  than  the  different  orders  of 
the  court  of  Hanover.  First  and  foremost,  there  was  the 
ducal  family — the  sacred  clan,  above,  apart,  and  beyond 
all  meaner  mortals.  In  the  second  class  came  the  Field- 
Marshal  of  the  army,  all  alone,  a  sort  of  buffer  between  their 
Serene  Highnesses  and  their  subjects.  Then  followed  in 
the  third  class,  in  order  meet,  the  civil  and  military  author- 
ities, the  privy  councillors  and  ministers,  and  generals  of 
the  army.  The  fourth  class  was  made  up  of  the  High  Cham- 
berlain and  the  marshals  of  the  court,  and  so  down  to  the 
pages,  all  of  whom  were  noble.  After  this  class  there  was  a 
great  gulf — the  gulf  between  noble  and  simple  ;  and  then 
came  in  array  a  number  of  lesser  court  officials,  gentlemen 
ushers,  physicians,  musicians,  every  one  in  nicely  gradu- 
ated order,  even  down  to  the  cooks  and  footmen,  coachmen 
and  grooms.  The  stables  at  Hanover  were  always  a 
feature ;  they  are  so  to-day,  and  must  have  been  well 
worth  seeing  in  Sophie  Dorothea's  time.  They  contained 


62          THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

some  six  hundred  horses  and  a  great  number  of  splendid 
equipages. 

Sophie  Dorothea  held  a  high  place  in  all  this  state,  and 
as  Princess  of  Hanover  (as  she  was  formally  styled)  she 
was  given  a  separate  household.  Her  apartments  were  in 
a  wing  of  the  old  palace  ;  but  she  had  her  own  establish- 
ment, her  chamberlain,  her  ladies-in-waiting,  and  her  pages. 
She  seldom  drove  out  except  in  an  enormous  gilt  coach, 
with  postillions  and  running  footmen.  We  may  picture 
her  rumbling  through  the  narrow  streets  of  old  Hanover 
of  an  afternoon,  her  pretty,  childish,  wistful  face  looking 
out  of  the  window  of  the  great  coach,  or  driving  outside 
the  walls  to  pay  her  respects  to  her  haughty  mother-in-law 
at  Herrenhausen. 

The  young  Princess  found  it  exceedingly  hard  at  first 
to  accommodate  herself  to  all  the  formalities  and  restrictions 
incidental  upon  her  rank  at  the  Hanoverian  court.  She 
never  quite  mastered  all  the  minutiae  of  court  etiquette  in 
which  the  Duchess  Sophia  revelled  ;  she  would  forget,  and 
in  her  childish,  impulsive  way,  greet  a  member  of  the  fourth 
•class  as  though  he  were  a  member  of  the  third,  or  vice  versa. 
She  followed  her  own  likes  and  dislikes  too  much,  she  was 
too  friendly  with  one  and  not  friendly  enough  with  the 
other,  she  would  sometimes  withdraw  from  the  court  circle 
when  she  was  bored,  and  did  not  always  appear  when  she 
was  wanted.  All  this  greatly  scandalised  the  Duchess 
Sophia,  who  considered  court  etiquette  the  very  essence 
of  royalty,  and  she  often  wrote  to  the  Duchess  of  Orleans 
complaining  of  the  bad  up-bringing  of  her  daughter-in-law 
and  the  way  in  which  her  education  had  been  neglected. 
Of  course  they  both  blamed  "  Madame "  of  Celle,  who, 
being  "  a  nobody,"  could  not  be  expected  to  teach  Sophie 
Dorothea  the  customs  of  a  court.  Perhaps  a  little  kind- 
ness and  forbearance  on  the  part  of  the  Duchess  Sophia 
might  have  taught  the  young  Princess  how  to  carry  her 
dignity  even  to  that  female  martinet's  satisfaction,  for  she 
was  very  adaptive  and  quick  to  learn.  But  the  Duchess 
Sophia  showed  her  no  sympathy,  and  her  daughter-in-law's 
little  slips  were  invariably  made  the  occasion  of  some 
slighting  remark,  either  on  herself  or  her  mother.  It  is  no 
wonder,  under  these  circumstances,  that  Sophie  Dorothea 
grew  mutinous  and  careless,  and  even  took  a  pleasure  in 


THE  COURT  OF  HANOVER  63 

showing  her  contempt  for  the  rules  of  etiquette  at  the 
Hanoverian  court  by  wilfully  transgressing  them  whenever 
she  pleased. 

The  poor  little  Princess,  in  these  first  months  of  her 
married  life  at  Hanover,  surrounded  by  spies  and  enemies, 
must  often  have  longed  to  flee  from  the  hollow  splendours 
of  the  court  to  the  home  life  at  Celle  and  the  arms  of  her 
loving  mother.  While  all  this  importance  was  attached  to 
the  outward  semblance,  no  one  at  Hanover  heeded,  and  no 
one  cared,  whether  she  was  happy  or  not.  It  was  hardly 
possible  for  her  to  have  been  happy.  Sophie  Dorothea 
was  the  victim  of  one  of  the  cruellest  of  state  marriages, 
and  her  only  hope  of  happiness  lay  in  the  chance  of  some 
love  and  forbearance  on  the  part  of  her  husband.  In  these 
first  months  of  marriage  her  nature  was  plastic  to  her 
husband's  touch.  A  kind  word  might  have  wrought  her 
to  love,  as  a  harsh  one  often  drove  her  to  tears  and  anger. 
With  a  little  kindness,  a  little  sympathy,  all  the  misery  and 
mistakes  of  later  years  might  have  been  averted,  but  George 
Louis  had  no  kind  words  for  the  daughter  of  "  Madame  " 
of  Celle,  and  even  thus  early  in  her  married  life  she  was 
neglected,  insulted,  and  forced  through  experiences  from 
which  her  girlish  purity  recoiled.  Even  if  she  had  no 
claim  on  his  affection,  she  might  have  had  some  on  his 
pity.  She  was  all  alone  and  with  none  to  help  or  advise 
her,  for  though  Celle  was  only  twenty  miles  away,  the 
strained  relations  between  the  two  courts  were  not  at  this 
date  so  relaxed  as  to  admit  of  much  visiting  between  them, 
and  the  means  of  communication  were  so  bad  that  her 
father's  principality  seemed  another  country. 

Sophie  Dorothea  had  brought  with  her  from  Celle  a 
trusted  friend,  if  not  a  very  wise  one,  in  a  young  lady, 
Fraulein  Eleonore  Knesebeck,  who  followed  her  to  Han- 
over, as  confidential  lady-in-waiting.  She  was  a  few  years 
older  than  the  Princess,  and  the  daughter  of  one  of  the 
councillors  at  Celle,  whose  name  appears  as  signing  the 
marriage  contract  between  Duke  George  William  and 
Duchess  Eldonore.  She  was  a  woman  of  some  ability, 
and  though  no  beauty,  had  a  fair  share  of  good  looks.  Her 
devotion  to  the  Princess  was  beyond  doubt,  but  her  dis- 
cretion, unfortunately,  was  doubtful  indeed,  and  even  in 
these  early  days  she  repeated  to  Sophie  Dorothea  many 


64    THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

things  that  would  have  been  better  ignored,  and  incited  her 
against  her  enemies. 

We  obtain  a  fairly  good  idea  of  the  way  in  which  Sophie 
Dorothea  spent  her  day  from  her  journals,  or  diaries,  and 
if  her  record  may  be  taken  as  a  sample  of  the  life  of  a 
German  princess  at  the  end  of  the  seventeenth  century, 
there  was  nothing  very  edifying  or  enlivening  about  it, 
even  in  so  gay  a  court  as  that  of  Hanover.  The  fore- 
noon would  be  spent  by  the  Princess  either  in  bed  (she  was 
not  an  early  riser)  or  in  her  apartments  writing  letters,  or 
working  with  her  needle.  If  the  weather  were  fine,  she 
might  take  a  walk  in  the  gardens  of  the  palace,  unless  it 
were  a  morning  on  which  she  "  took  her  bath  ".  In  that 
case  she  kept  her  room  most  of  the  day  for  fear  of  a  chill  ; 
but  the  bath  does  not  seem  to  have  occurred  too  frequently.1 
Sophie  Dorothea  would  spend  the  greater  part  of  the  fore- 
noon in  dressing,  or  rather  in  being  dressed — a  lengthy 
operation,  for  she  was  fond  of  attiring  herself.  When  this 
was  over  to  her  satisfaction,  attended  by  her  lady-in-waiting, 
and  preceded  by  a  page,  she  would  go  down  in  state  to  the 
substantial  mid-day  dinner,  of  which  her  mother  has  given 
so  vivacious  an  account.  Ernest  Augustus  would  descend 
in  state  from  his  apartments,  the  Duchess  Sophia  from 
hers,  with  her  daughter,  Sophia  Charlotte.  The  Prince  of 
Hanover  (as  George  Louis  was  styled)  would  arrive ;  and 
the  younger  princes  would  also  appear  upon  the  scene, 
and,  when  all  were  assembled  in  the  great  hall,  they  would 
sit  in  order  of  rank,  and  the  most  rigid  etiquette  prevailed 
throughout.  It  must  have  been  a  funny  sight,  the  bowing 
and  curtseying,  the  devouring  of  great  dishes  of  heavy  food, 
the  copious  drinking  of  wine  and  beer.  After  the  dinner 
was  over,  their  Highnesses  retired  to  their  respective  apart- 
ments, and  very  often  (not  unnaturally)  Sophie  Dorothea 
would  return  to  bed  for  a  period.  When  she  arose,  if  the 
day  were  not  too  far  gone,  she  would  take  an  airing  in  her 
gilded  coach,  or  pay  some  calls  on  ladies  she  wished  to 
honour  with  a  visit,  or  receive  some  visitors,  never  alone, 

1  The  morning  bath  was  not  a  daily  institution  at  the  end  of  the  seven- 
teenth century,  even  with  princesses ;  for  aught  I  know,  it  may  not  be  in 
Germany  to-day.  Cleanliness  was  not  a  prominent  virtue,  and  in  the  long 
list  of  servants  at  the  court  of  Hanover  there  appear  to  have  been  only  two 
washerwomen  employed ! 


THE  COURT  OF  HANOVER  65 

always  in  the  presence  of  her  lady-in-waiting.  By  this 
time  it  was  necessary  to  dress  again  for  supper,  often  an 
occasion  of  great  ceremony,  when  rich  robes  and  costly 
jewels  were  donned.  Again  the  Prince  and  Princess  would 
repair  to  the  great  hall,  and  again  meet  the  Duke  and 
Duchess  and  members  of  the  ducal  family  in  order  of 
rank.  When  supper  was  over,  the  great  personages  would 
join  the  general  circle  of  the  nobility  ;  there  might  be  music 
and  conversation,  but  more  likely  they  would  play  cards, 
ombre  and  quadrille,  and  large  sums  would  be  lost  and 
won,  for  play  was  high  at  Hanover  in  those  days.  Then 
the  Duchess  Sophia  and  the  Princess  would  retire  to  their 
apartments,  and  the  company  broke  up.  The  next  day,  da 
capo.  On  occasions  of  importance,  as,  for  instance,  the 
arrival  of  foreign  princes  or  ambassadors  at  Hanover  (and 
many  arrived  at  that  time,  for  there  was  much  buying  and 
selling  of  troops,  and  many  intrigues),  there  would  be  more 
ceremony,  larger  banquets,  balls  and  comedies  and  plays. 
But  the  above  record  forms  a  fair  specimen  of  the  average 
day  at  the  court  of  Hanover. 

In  this  way  the  winter  passed.  The  spring  dawned, 
the  lime-trees  and  acacias  flowered  along  the  banks  of  the 
river  Leine.  The  summer  came  and  went.  There  were  pas- 
toral plays  in  the  gardens  of  Herrenhausen,  and  masques, 
and  visits  of  princes  and  princesses.  But  Sophie  Dorothea 
gradually  withdrew  herself  from  the  festivities,  and  with  the 
autumn  days  there  came  good  news  to  the  courts  of  Han- 
over and  Celle.  The  Princess  gave  birth  to  a  son  and  heir, 
who  was  born  at  Hanover  on  October  30,  1683,  and  who 
was  destined  forty-four  years  later  to  ascend  the  mighty 
throne  of  England.1 

The  christening  was  celebrated  with  much  rejoicing, 
and  the  infant  was  given  the  names  of  George  Augustus, 
after  his  two  grandfathers.  The  event  naturally  increased 
Sophie  Dorothea's  importance,  and  it  set  the  seal  upon  the 
reconciliation  of  the  duchies  of  Hanover  and  Celle.  Hence- 
forward we  find  the  Duke  and  Duchess  of  Celle  visiting 
Hanover,  and  Ernest  Augustus  and  sometimes  George 
Louis,  but  rarely  the  Duchess  Sophia,  returning  the  visit 
at  Celle,  or  staying  with  George  William  and  his  wife  at 

1  George  II.  succeeded  his  father  in  1727. 

5 


66    THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

their  hunting-lodges  of  Gohre,  Brockhausen,  and  Wien- 
hausen.  Sophie  Dorothea  also  visited  her  parents  fre- 
quently, and  for  long  intervals. 

After  the  birth  of  the  son  and  heir,  the  Duchess  Sophia's 
manner  towards  her  daughter-in-law  seems  to  have  altered 
for  the  better.  She  apparently  determined  to  make  the 
best  of  Sophie  Dorothea,  and  though  she  never  liked  her, 
and  had  little  in  common  with  her,  she  dissembled  her 
dislike,  and  treated  her  with  outward  courtesy.  For  good 
or  evil,  Sophie  Dorothea  was  her  son's  wife,  and  the  mother 
of  the  child  on  whom  the  accumulated  dignities  of  the  House 
of  Brunswick-Liineburg  would  one  day  descend.  It  even 
seemed  that  the  birth  of  the  son  might  form  a  link  between 
George  Louis  and  his  wife ;  such  an  event  surely  made  for 
greater  identity  of  interest  between  them,  for  a  man,  unless 
he  be  thoroughly  bad,  can  hardly  withhold  some  sympathy 
from  the  mother  of  his  firstborn  child,  and  George  Louis 
was  by  no  means  wholly  bad.  He  recognised  the  beauty 
and  grace  of  his  wife,  and  if  they  had  been  left  to  themselves, 
the  young  couple,  despite  their  uncongenial  temperaments, 
might  have  managed  to  rub  along  together  fairly  well. 

But  they  were  not  left  to  themselves  ;  an  enemy  was  on 
the  alert.  Sophie  Dorothea,  by  her  amiability,  had  made 
herself  generally  popular  in  Hanover,  and,  as  we  have  noted, 
she  was  especially  viewed  with  favour  by  her  uncle  and 
father-in-law,  Ernest  Augustus.  Her  unaffected  manners, 
her  innocence  and  charm,  contrasted  with  the  craft  and 
full-blown  charms  of  Madame  Platen,  were  like  a  cup  of 
cold,  pure  water  after  a  highly  spiced  draught ;  and  Ernest 
Augustus  found  himself  attracted  more  and  more  to  the 
society  of  his  daughter-in-law  and  away  from  the  lures  of 
his  mistress.  Madame  Platen  saw  this  and  trembled.  Vice 
always  fears  innocence,  and  when  she  noted  the  growing 
influence  and  importance  of  Sophie  Dorothea,  her  envy  and 
jealousy  were  aroused.  Yet  she  had  no  real  cause  of  com- 
plaint. She  had  been  largely  responsible  for  bringing  about 
the  marriage,  and  she  had  been  liberally  rewarded  for  her 
share  in  the  transaction,  possibly  by  William  of  Orange, 
certainly  by  a  commission  on  the  substantial  dowry  ;  and 
in  addition  to  these  pecuniary  rewards  her  husband  had 
been  raised  to  the  rank  of  Baron.  On  the  strength  of 
these  successes  she  had  launched  forth  into  a  costly  and 


THE  COURT  OF  HANOVER  67 

extravagant  style  of  living.  Her  residence  at  Monplaisir, 
conveniently  situated  half-way  between  Hanover  and  Her- 
renhausen,  was  beautified  and  enlarged  until  it  vied  with  the 
ducal  palaces ;  her  entertainments  were  of  the  most  lavish 
description,  her  liveries  and  equipages  rivalled  those  of  the 
Princess  of  Hanover,  while  in  dress  and  adornment  she  far 
outshone  the  Duchess  Sophia.  At  Monplaisir  she  held  a 
court  hardly  second  to  that  of  the  Duchess  and  attracted  all 
the  gay  cavaliers  and  handsome  young  nobles  of  Hanover, 
who  went  to  bask  in  the  favour  of  the  powerful  mistress. 
High  play,  deep  drinking,  and  general  looseness  of  conduct 
were  the  rule  at  Monplaisir  ;  no  wonder  the  young  bloods 
of  Hanover  found  it  so  attractive  ! 

The  Duchess  Sophia,  true  to  her  policy,  steadily  ignored 
all  these  extravagances  on  the  part  of  Madame  Platen, 
and  continued  to  seek  distraction  in  the  consolations  of 
philosophy  and  the  society  of  Leibniz  and  other  learned 
men,  whom,  to  her  honour  be  it  said,  she  invited  to  the 
court  of  Hanover.  Not  so  Sophie  Dorothea,  who  was  first 
astounded  and  then  indignant,  at  the  impudent  display  of 
the  court  mistress.  Perhaps  vanity  had  something  to  do 
with  her  indignation,  for  she  objected  to  so  many  of  the 
young  nobles  absenting  themselves  from  her  quiet  little 
levees  to  pay  their  respects  to  Madame  Platen.  In  youth 
and  beauty  the  Princess  far  outshone  the  more  mature 
Platen,  and  at  the  court  functions,  splendidly  dressed  and 
brilliant  with  jewels,  she  was  easily  first  and  Madame 
Platen  nowhere.  Madame  Platen  had  so  long  been  the 
leading  lady  at  the  court  of  Hanover,  in  fact  if  not  in 
name,  that  she  could  ill  brook  a  rival  near  her  throne,  and 
she  had  imagined,  in  her  ignorance,  that  a  young  girl  like 
Sophie  Dorothea  would  be  amenable  to  her  wishes.  But 
the  Princess,  though  young,  and  careless  enough  about 
etiquette  in  the  ordinary  way,  was  not  disposed  to  abate 
any  jot  or  tittle  of  the  privileges  of  her  rank  and  position 
in  favour  of  Madame  Platen,  and  quickly  intimated  to  the 
woman  that  she  must  keep  her  place.  Perhaps  Sophie 
Dorothea  would  have  done  better  if  she  had  imitated  the 
policy  of  her  august  mother-in-law,  and  ignored  the  power- 
ful mistress,  but  she  was  young  and  not  altogether  wise, 
and  her  heart  was  hot  with  indignant  anger  at  the  woman's 
arrogance  and  want  of  respect  to  herself.  She  expressed 

5* 


68          THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

herself  with  considerable  freedom  on  the  subject,  and  her 
remarks,  the  reverse  of  complimentary,  coming  to  Madame 
Platen's  ears,  incensed  her  the  more  against  the  airs  and 
graces  of  "  the  interloper,"  as  she  called  the  Princess. 
Madame  Platen  was,  in  fact,  wounded  with  her  own 
weapon  ;  she  had  helped  to  bring  Sophie  Dorothea  to 
Hanover,  only  to  find  her  arrayed  against  her. 

When  once  Madame  Platen's  jealousy  was  aroused 
there  were  no  lengths  to  which  she  was  not  ready  to  go. 
First  she  denounced  Sophie  Dorothea  and  her  mother  as 
upstarts  who  had  no  right  to  the  titles  they  assumed,  but 
this  was  old  matter,  and  at  the  best  came  second-hand 
from  the  Duchess  Sophia,  therefore  it  did  no  harm  ;  then 
she  collected  and  retailed  to  Ernest  Augustus  all  the  ill- 
natured  gossip  she  could  gather  about  the  Princess,  but 
the  Duke  laughed  at  it  good-humouredly  and  would  not 
listen  ;  he  was  quite  ready  to  excuse  his  daughter-in-law 
any  little  indiscretions  on  the  ground  of  her  youth  and 
good  looks,  and  regarded  all  this  tittle-tattle  as  mere 
feminine  amenities.  Madame  Platen  next  sounded  the 
Duchess  Sophia,  but  that  lady  only  smiled  her  inscrutable 
smile  and  pursued  the  even  tenor  of  her  way.  Failing 
with  the  Duke  and  Duchess,  she  had  recourse  to  the 
husband,  and  with  George  Louis  she  was  more  successful. 
Like  most  heavy  and  slow-witted  young  men,  he  was 
peculiarly  sensitive  to  ridicule.  Sophie  Dorothea  had  a 
nimble  wit  and  a  thoughtless  tongue,  which  were  ever 
getting  her  into  trouble,  and  she  sometimes  made  fun  of 
her  husband  and  his  boorish  ways,  letting  fall  remarks  that 
had  better  have  been  left  unsaid.  These  were  retailed  to 
Madame  Platen  by  spies,  and  reported  again  by  her  to 
George  Louis  with  much  embroidery,  thus  inflaming  his 
mind  against  his  wife.  Words  followed  between  them. 
Neither  was  blessed  with  a  very  good  temper,  nor  had 
much  forbearance.  From  words  they  proceeded  to  open 
quarrels,  which  became  more  and  more  frequent,  and  the 
relations  between  the  young  couple  were  soon  strained  to 
the  utmost.  Madame  Platen's  next  move  was  to  recall 
her  sister,  Madame  Bussche,  to  Hanover,  and  throw  her 
once  more  in  the  way  of  George  Louis,  but  this  missed  its 
mark.  Probably  he  was  inconstant  in  his  amours,  and 
perhaps  he  had  a  new  favourite ;  at  any  rate  he  refused 


THE  COURT  OF  HANOVER  69 

to  be  fascinated  again  by  the  charms  of  Madame  Bussche. 
Meanwhile,  his  wife  and  he  drifted  more  and  more  apart. 
By-and-by  George  Louis  turned  again  to  his  first  love — 
military  service,  and  the  next  year  or  two  found  him  far 
more  in  the  camp  than  at  the  court.  The  neglected  Sophie 
Dorothea  found  consolation  in  her  little  son  and  in  frequent 
visits  to  her  parents  at  Celle,  Brockhausen,  and  elsewhere, 
and  spent  only  a  few  months  of  the  year  under  the  same 
roof  as  her  husband. 

About  this  time  (1684)  there  were  great  festivities  at 
the  court  of  Hanover,  for  the  Duchess  Sophia's  match- 
making proclivities  bore  fruit  in  the  marriage  of  her  only 
daughter,  Sophia  Charlotte,  to  the  Elector  of  Brandenburg, 
who  later  became  first  King  of  Prussia.  True,  the  Elector 
was  eleven  years  older  than  his  bride  and  a  widower,  but 
the  Duchess  Sophia  did  not  consider  her  daughter's  inclina- 
tions in  such  a  matter  as  her  marriage,  especially  one  so 
advantageous  as  this.  Sophia  Charlotte  was  the  young 
lady  of  whom  her  mother  said,  when  sounded  on  the 
subject,  "  that  she  was  of  no  religion  as  yet,"  and  by  this 
marriage  her  faith  was  finally  settled  on  the  Protestant 
side.  The  Electress  of  Brandenburg  seems  to  have  justified 
this  up-bringing,  for  she  was  a  sprightly  princess  of  ex- 
tremely liberal  and  advanced  views.  She  had  inherited 
her  mother's  abilities  and  also  her  dislike  for  Sophie 
Dorothea.  There  was  never  any  love  lost  between  them, 
so  the  Princess  was  glad  when  the  Electress  of  Brandenburg 
took  her  departure  from  Hanover  to  Berlin,  where  she 
afterwards  reigned  as  the  first  Queen  of  Prussia. 


CHAPTER  VII. 

THE  POWER  OF  COUNTESS  PLATEN. 

(1684-1688.) 

Trust  not  the  treason  of  those  smiling  looks 
Until  ye  have  their  guileful  brains  well  tried, 
For  they  are  like  unto  the  golden  hooks 
That  from  the  foolish  fish  their  baits  do  hide. 

ED.  SPENSER. 

SHORTLY  after  the  marriage  of  his  daughter  to  the  Elector 
of  Brandenburg,  the  Duke  of  Hanover  gave  himself  a 
holiday  from  the  cares  of  state  and  made  another  journey 
to  his  beloved  Italy,  where  he  stayed  this  time  nearly  two 
years.  He  travelled  with  much  magnificence  and  a  large 
suite,  including  the  indispensable  Madame  Platen — and 
her  husband  by  way  of  keeping  up  appearances.  Ernest 
Augustus  made  his  headquarters  at  Venice,  where  he 
maintained  considerable  state,  which  he  was  now  well  able 
to  do  with  the  aid  of  Sophie  Dorothea's  dowry.  Madame 
Platen  was  the  great  lady  of  this  miniature  court,  and  no 
doubt  Ernest  Augustus  often  regaled  her  with  tales  of  the 
merry  days  which  he  and  George  William  had  spent  in  the 
city  of  the  Doges.  Brilliant  festivities,  some  of  which  cost 
seven  or  eight  thousand  thalers,  and  a  princely  liberality, 
endeared  him  to  the  hearts  of  the  nobility  and  people,  and 
consoled  the  Venetians  for  the  large  subsidies  they  paid  for 
the  two  thousand  four  hundred  Hanoverian  soldiers  Ernest 
Augustus  sold  them  by  agreement  in  1684.  The  Duke  of 
Hanover  was  shrewd  even  in  his  pleasures,  and  was  always 
ready  to  do  a  good  stroke  of  business  when  the  opportunity 
came  his  way.  He  had  not  much  to  sell  except  his  soldiers, 
but  they  were  good  fighting  men,  and  fetched  a  high  price 
in  the  market, — he  sold  them  like  cattle  in  herds,  and 
squandered  the  blood-money  on  his  Platens  and  extravagant 
living. 

70 


THE  POWER  OF  COUNTESS  PLATEN  71 

Meantime  Ernest  Augustus's  lawful  spouse,  the  Duchess 
Sophia,  was  left  behind  at  Herrenhausen  to  carry  on  the 
government  of  the  duchy,  and,  what  was  more  difficult,  to 
keep  in  order  the  unruly  cubs,  her  sons,  who  were  now 
growing  up  to  man's  estate,  and  whose  only  point  of  re- 
semblance was  the  hatred  they  bore  to  one  another  in 
general  and  their  father  in  particular.  They  drank,  gambled, 
and  swore  in  the  approved  fashion  of  the  time,  squandered 
their  substance  in  riotous  living,  and  quarrelled  and  fought 
until  the  court  of  Hanover  became  like  a  bear-garden.  The 
Duchess  Sophia  must  have  had  great  trouble  with  her 
unruly  brood,  and  it  is  impossible  to  withhold  pity  from  her, 
for  she  was  fond  of  them.  Prince  Augustus  ("  Gustchen  "), 
her  second  son,  was  the  first  to  fall  into  disgrace.  We  find 
her  writing :  "  Poor  Gus  is  thrust  out,  and  his  father  will 
give  him  no  more  keep.  I  laugh  in  the  day  and  cry  all 
night  about  it,  for  I  am  a  fool  with  my  children."  Maternal 
love  was  the  soft  side  of  the  great  Duchess's  character. 
For  the  rest,  she  was  no  doubt  glad  to  be  rid  of  Ernest 
Augustus  and  Madame  Platen  for  a  while.  The  latter  had 
made  herself  so  aggressive  of  late,  and  raised  so  many 
breezes  in  her  quarrels  with  Sophie  Dorothea,  that  she 
must  have  ruffled  even  the  Duchess's  serene  philosophy. 
Sophia,  too,  was  greatly  interested  in  affairs  in  England  at 
this  time.  Her  first  cousin,  Charles  II.,  was  recently  dead, 
and  his  brother,  James  II.,  had  ascended  his  uneasy  throne. 
Sophia  heard  of  Monmouth's  ill-starred  rebellion,  of  King 
James's  unwise  rule  and  the  rising  tide  against  Popery,  of 
William  of  Orange's  intrigues,  and  these  things  absorbed 
her  to  the  exclusion  of  lesser  annoyances.  She  paid  little 
or  no  attention  to  her  daughter-in-law,  Sophie  Dorothea, 
who,  also  forsaken  by  her  husband,  remained  alone  at 
Hanover ;  for  George  Louis  had  now  marched  to  Hungary 
to  make  war  on  the  Turks,  with  the  soldiers  ordered  from 
Hanover  and  Celle  to  assist  the  Emperor.  When  the 
campaign  came  to  a  close,  George  Louis  went  to  join  his 
father  at  Venice  without  returning  to  Hanover. 

Ernest  Augustus  then  bethought  himself  of  Sophie 
Dorothea,  who  was  having  a  dull  life  at  Hanover  shut  up 
with  her  stern  mother-in-law.  Ernest  Augustus  had  a 
tender  spot  in  his  heart  for  his  niece,  and  perhaps  he  had 
a  twinge  of  conscience  about  spending  all  her  money  on 


72    THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

Madame  Platen  without  giving  her  any  of  the  fun  ;  perhaps, 
too,  he  thought  it  was  time  that  she  and  her  husband  should 
come  together  again.  They  had  not  met  for  nearly  a  year, 
and  had  parted  in  anger.  So  he  sent  General  Ilten,  who 
was  in  his  suite,  back  to  Hanover  with  instructions  to  escort 
the  Princess  to  Venice.  Sophie  Dorothea  was  delighted 
with  the  prospect  of  the  change  ;  she  packed  up  her  prettiest 
dresses  and  jewels,  and  taking  with  her  Madame  Ilten,  the 
Mistress  of  the  Robes,  and  Eleonore  Knesebeck,  her  lady- 
in-waiting,  she  set  forth  at  once.  She  arrived  in  Venice 
just  before  the  carnival. 

Sophie  Dorothea  was  now  in  her  nineteenth  year,  and 
every  year  seemed  to  add  to  her  beauty.  She  had  warm 
French  blood  in  her  veins,  and  her  spirits  rose  to  overflow- 
ing at  this  opportunity  of  seeing  the  world  ;  it  was  her  first 
experience  of  foreign  life,  and  she  threw  herself  into  the 
pleasures  of  the  carnival  with  a  zest  that  delighted  her 
uncle  and  slightly  shocked  the  prim  Mistress  of  the  Robes. 
Yet  Sophie  Dorothea's  gaiety  was  innocent  enough ;  it 
was  merely  the  expression  of  a  young  girl's  delight,  and  a 
rebound  after  having  been  shut  up  so  long  with  her  grim 
mother-in-law. 

Ernest  Augustus,  whose  taste  for  pleasure  was  somewhat 
dulled  by  time,  was  so  pleased  at  the  keenness  with  which 
his  daughter-in-law  enjoyed  everything,  and  the  praises  he 
heard  on  all  sides  of  her  wit  and  beauty,  that  he  decided 
to  give  her  a  further  treat  and  take  her  to  Rome  for  the 
Easter  festivities.  Madame  Ilten  was  unable  to  accompany 
the  Princess,  as  her  duties  as  Mistress  of  the  Robes  com- 
pelled her  to  return  to  the  Duchess  Sophia  at  Hanover,  but 
Eleonore  Knesebeck  went  in  attendance.  Prince  George 
Louis  did  not  travel  to  Rome  with  his  wife,  some  trifling 
difficulty  about  a  point  of  etiquette  arose,  he  seized  it  as  an 
excuse,  and  went  to  Naples  instead. 

While  she  was  at  Rome  Sophie  Dorothea  met  the 
Marquis  de  Lassaye,  and  about  their  short  acquaintance 
much  has  been  written  which  has  no  foundation  in  fact. 
Lassaye  was  a  personage.  He  had  served  with  distinc- 
tion in  the  Imperial  army  against  the  Turks,  and,  when 
the  campaign  was  over,  journeyed  to  Italy  like  Prince 
George  Louis  ;  he  may  have  travelled  with  him.  He  was 
a  French  nobleman,  wealthy,  and  brilliant,  and  exceedingly 


THE  POWER  OF  COUNTESS  PLATEN  73 

given  to  amours  and  adventures.  Brunet,  in  his  edition  of 
the  Correspondence  of  the  Duchess  of  Orleans,  writes  of  him  : 
"  The  life  of  the  Marquis  de  Lassaye  was  filled  with  ad- 
ventures romantic  enough  to  form  the  substance  of  a  most 
improbable  novel "  ;  and  the  Biographie  Universelle  says 
he  was  "well  known  by  reason  of  his  birth,  his  wit,  his 
marriages,  his  law  suits,  but  still  more  by  an  uninterrupted 
series  of  love  affairs,  which  occupied  the  greater  portion  of 
an  extremely  lengthy  career  ".  This  gay  Lothario  died  in 
1738,  at  the  age  of  eighty-seven,  without  having  experienced 
any  misfortunes,  or,  as  he  happily  expressed  it,  "  without 
having  unpacked  his  goods  ". 

The  fame  of  the  Marquis  de  Lassaye  was  at  its  zenith 
when  he  threw  himself  across  the  path  of  Sophie  Dorothea 
in  Rome,  and,  if  we  may  believe  his  word,  for  we  have  no 
other  evidence,  he  promptly  seized  the  opportunity  to  make 
love  to  her.  Some  fifty  years  later,  before  he  ended  his 
days  in  his  castle  of  Lassaye,  he  made  a  collection  of  every- 
thing he  had  written,  or  was  supposed  to  have  written,1  and 
had  it  privately  printed  by  his  own  press  in  his  castle.  In 
this  compilation  he  inserted  thirteen  love-letters,  which  he 
.asserts  that  he  wrote  to  Sophie  Dorothea  when  she  was  in 
Italy  ;  but  none  of  them  are  dated,  and  all  are  the  vague 
rubbish  which  in  those  days  formed  the  stock-in-trade  of 
.gallantry.  They  are  couched  in  extravagant  expressions  of 
devotion,  but  are  singularly  unconvincing.  If  we  may  be- 
lieve his  letters,  there  was  a  flirtation  between  the  Princess 
and  the  Marquis,  Eleonore  Knesebeck  acting  as  a  go- 
between  ;  the  affair  was  discovered,  broken  off,  and  the 
Princess  was  admonished,  and  Lassaye  forced  to  quit 
Rome.  The  letters  are  not  worth  repeating  in  full,  but 
the  last  one  he  alleges  that  he  wrote  to  the  Princess  will 
serve  as  a  specimen  of  the  rest  : — 

"  I  do  not  desire  that  you  should  run  the  risk  of  ruining 

1  This  collection  is  called  Me  moires  de  Monsieur  de  Lassaye.  It  bears 
also  the  better  title  of  Recueils  de  diffcrentes  chases,  for  the  parts  of  which  it 
is  composed  are  very  varied  and  disconnected — love  affairs,  philosophy,  ethics, 
satire,  reflections  on  various  matters,  and  letters,  all  jumbled  up  together. 
Lassaye  had  only  a  few  copies  of  this  collection  printed  for  himself  and  a 
select  circle  of  friends,  so  copies  are  extremely  rare  and  cannot  be  bought. 
Herr  Edward  Bodemann  managed  to  stumble  across  one  in  a  second-hand 
bookshop  in  Paris,  and  to  him  I  am  indebted  for  the  perusal  of  the  cor- 
xespondence  in  the  original  French. 


74    THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

yourself  by  keeping  up  relations  with  me :  it  is  better  for 
me  to  die  and  for  you  to  live  less  unhappily.  Stop,  then, 
writing  to  a  man  who  always  brings  misfortunes  in  his  train,, 
and  whose  fates  are  unpropitious.  I  have  almost  lost  the 
habit  of  sleeping,  and  am  scarcely  able  to  support  myself. 
Why  have  I  been  born  with  such  a  sensitive  heart  ?  Why 
was  I  destined  to  be  always  unhappy  ?  Suffering  seems  to 
be  my  only  lot  in  the  world.  Life  is  a  burden  to  me,  and 
in  dying  I  should  be  able  to  secure  your  peace  and  happi- 
ness. Farewell,  dear  Princess  ;  I  can  no  longer  bear  the 
grief  that  overwhelms  me." 

That  Lassaye  ever  sent  these  letters  to  the  Princess,  or 
even  wrote  them,  is  extremely  improbable.  The  letters  did 
not  see  the  light  until  fifty  years  later,  when  the  woman 
whom  he  slandered  was  dead,  and  unable  to  refute  his 
accusations,  and  it  is  unlikely  he  made  copies  when  he 
wrote  them,  and  kept  them  all  that  time.  To  what  end  ? 
It  would  have  been  more  to  the  point  if  he  could  have- 
published  the  letters  he  alleges  he  received  from  Sophie 
Dorothea,  but  his  audacity  stopped  short  at  the  point  of 
forgery.  He  was  an  exceedingly  vain  and  garrulous  person, 
fond  of  boasting  of  his  conquests  with  the  fair  sex,  and,  if 
we  may  believe  him,  half  the  princesses  of  Europe  had 
capitulated  to  his  fascinations.  The  high  rank,  beauty, 
and  romantic  history  of  Sophie  Dorothea  made  him  desirous 
of  adding  her  to  his  list,  and  he  deliberately  exaggerated  a 
passing  acquaintance  to  suit  his  purpose.  The  truth  seems, 
to  be  this.  Sophie  Dorothea  was  flattered  by  the  homage  of 
the  brilliant  Frenchman.  She  may  perhaps  have  coquetted 
with  him  a  little  after  the  fashion  of  the  time — that  is  to 
say,  she  may  have  listened  to  his  pretty  speeches  and 
laughed  at  his  sallies.  But  when  she  saw  he  was  likely  to* 
put  a  false  construction  upon  her  amiability,  and  take  ad- 
vantage of  her  good  nature,  she  nipped  the  acquaintance  in 
the  bud  and  dismissed  him  abruptly.  Lassaye,  with  all  the 
pettiness  of  a  small  mind,  cherished  against  the  Princess  a 
grudge  for  the  blow  she  had  inflicted  upon  f  his  vanity,  and 
revenged  himself  by  composing  bogus  letters. 

After  a  few  months  in  Italy,  Sophie  Dorothea  returned 
to  Hanover,  and  settled  down  again  to  her  routine  life. 
On  March  16,  1687,  she  gave  birth  to  a  daughter,  who- 
was  christened  Sophie  Dorothea,  after  her  mother,  and  who-,. 


THE   ALTE    PALAIS,    HANOVER. 

From  a  photograph  ly  the  Author. 


THE  POWER  OF  COUNTESS  PLATEN  75 

in  years  to  come,  married  her  cousin,  the  King  of  Prussia, 
and  became  mother  of  Frederick  the  Great. 

It  would  seem  that  the  birth  of  a  daughter  instead  of  a 
son  was  in  some  sense  a  disappointment  to  the  ducal  family 
of  Hanover,  though  why  poor  Sophie  Dorothea  should  be 
blamed  it  is  not  easy  to  see.  The  event  did  not  tend  to 
increase  her  prestige,  as  the  birth  of  George  Augustus  had 
done  ;  and  her  husband,  who  was  now  home  again,  became 
more  indifferent  and  colder  than  ever.  In  these  two 
children,  for  she  bore  no  more,  Sophie  Dorothea  found  all 
the  happiness  she  experienced  in  her  unhappy  married  life. 
Some  of  this  unhappiness,  it  must  be  admitted,  she  deliber- 
ately provoked.  Though  she  did  not  love  her  husband,  she 
was  furiously  jealous  of  his  amours  with  other  women,  and 
resented  the  presence  of  his  favourites  in  proximity  to 
herself.  The  little  Hanoverian  court  was  a  hot-bed  of 
intrigue,  a  nest  of  envy,  hatred,  malice,  and  all  uncharitable- 
ness,  and  the  more  we  look  into  it  the  more  we  can  under- 
stand the  philosophic  policy  of  the  Duchess  Sophia,  who 
ignored  and  kept  aloof  from  it  all.  No  doubt  she  chose 
the  better  part,  though  it  seems  a  somewhat  unnatural  one, 
for  interference  would  have  been  useless,  and  by  abstaining 
she  preserved  her  dignity.  Sophie  Dorothea  was  different. 
At  the  outset  she  made  an  enemy  of  Madame  Platen,  and 
met  gibe  with  gibe  and  intrigue  with  intrigue.  Of  course 
she  had  the  worst  of  the  duel ;  it  was  like  a  fight  between 
a  hawk  and  a  dove.  She  was  no  match  for  the  older 
woman,  who  thwarted  her  at  every  turn,  and  grew  daily  in 
authority  and  arrogance.  About  this  time  Ernest  Augustus 
advanced  Platen  to  the  title  of  Count,  and  his  wife  blossomed 
into  a  Countess.  Her  power  was  now  so  great  that  even 
the  stoutest  of  her  foes  feared  to  provoke  her,  and  lesser 
obstacles  were  swept  out  of  her  path. 

As  an  illustration  may  be  quoted  the  case  of  the  abigail 
Use.  Court  ladies  in  those  days  had  often  in  their  house- 
hold an  attendant  who  filled  the  middle  distance  between 
the  servants  and  the  mistress.  Use  occupied  this  ambiguous 
position  with  the  Countess  Platen,  and  a  very  hard  time  she 
must  have  had.  She  was  young  and  fairly  good-looking, 
and  probably  not  too  strict  in  her  views  of  right  and  wrong. 
Duke  Ernest  Augustus  was  in  the  habit  of  consulting  his 
Prime  Minister's  wife  far  more  frequently  than  his  Prime 


76    THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

Minister,  and  whiled  away  many  an  hour  in  her  congenial 
society  at  Monplaisir.  As  a  rule  he  sent  her  notice  of  his 
intention  of  coming  to  see  her,  but  one  fine  afternoon,  as  he 
drove  back  from  Herrenhausen,  he  thought  he  would  pay 
the  Countess  a  surprise  visit.  He  entered  Monplaisir  by 
the  garden  door  unannounced.  The  Countess  was  absent, 

o 

but  under  the  trees  was  the  abigail  Use,  whom  Ernest 
Augustus  had  never  seen.  The  Duke  could  not  resist  the 
temptation  of  a  few  words  with  a  young  and  pretty  woman, 
and  insisted  that  the  abigail  should  not  withdraw.  Use 
remained,  and  was  laughing  and  talking  with  the  Duke, 
when  suddenly  the  Countess  Platen  came  upon  them  like  a 
whirlwind.  The  Countess. curbed  her  rage  for  the  moment, 
and  confined  herself  to  an  expression  of  astonishment  that 
Use  should  have  had  the  impertinence  to  thrust  her  company 
upon- the  august  presence  of  His  Highness.  She  bade  the 
abigail  begone,  and  then,  no  doubt,  gave  Ernest  Augustus  a 
sound  rating  on  his  lack  of  dignity  and  good  taste. 

Whatever  may  have  taken  place  between  these  exalted 
personages,  one  thing  is  certain  ;  Use  was  dismissed  from 
Countess  Platen's  service  with  every  mark  of  ignominy.  Nor 
did  her  punishment  end  here.  The  following  week  Ernest 
Augustus  went  to  Osnabriick,  and  the  moment  his  back  was 
turned  the  Countess  Platen  clapped  the  unfortunate  abigail 
into  the  common  jail,  or  rather  that  part  of  it  which  was 
a  "  spinning  house  ".  The  fact  that  a  woman  without  any 
trial  should  be  dragged  off  to  prison  on  a  trumped-up  charge 
shows  how  powerful  Countess  Platen  was  in  Hanover  ;  her 
word  seems  to  have  been  as  good  as  the  Duke's  sign  manual. 
Use  was  kept  in  prison  some  time,  and  then  "  dry  drummed  " 
(a  sort  of  seventeenth-century  rough  music)  out  of  Hanover 
as  a  woman  of  loose  character,  dangerous  to  public  morals. 
The  girl  found  herself  without  the  walls,  friendless  and  pen- 
niless. In  this  plight  she  appealed  to  Ernest  Augustus,  but 
that  volatile  Prince  had  already  forgotten  her,  or  was  afraid 
to  arouse  the  ire  of  Countess  Platen.  He  sent  her  a  small 
present  of  money,  and  cynically  counselled  her  to  give 
Hanover  a  wide  berth  in  future.  Use  then  made  her  way 
to  Celle,  and  laid  her  sad  case  before  the  Duchess  Eleonore, 
no  doubt  expatiating  upon  Countess  Platen's  enormities 
and  her  intrigues  against  Sophie  Dorothea.  The  Duchess 
of  Celle,  after  sjfting  the  facts  of  the  case,  took  Use  into 


THE  POWER  OF  COUNTESS  PLATEN  77 

her  employment,  and  found  her  an  asylum  in  the  castle. 
Countess  Platen  resented  the  Duchess's  action  as  a  personal 
insult  to  herself,  and  she  was  the  more  enraged  against  her 
and  Sophie  Dorothea.  So  the  quarrel  grew. 

At  the  court  of  Hanover,  as  we  have  seen,  there  were 
plots  and  counterplots  ;  in  addition  to  the  women's  squabbles, 
father  was  arrayed  against  son  and  son  against  father,  and 
brother  against  brother.  Among  the  unruly  sons  of  Ernest 
Augustus,  Sophie  Dorothea  had  her  friends,  and  the  young 
princes  for  the  most  part  hated  Countess  Platen  quite  as 
much  as  she  did.  Of  them  all,  Maximilian  was  the  most 
ungovernable,  and  had  an  unlimited  capacity  for  getting  into 
scrapes.  Though  well  preserved,  Countess  Platen  was  by 
this  time  past  her  first  youth,  and  she  had  recourse  to  divers 
means  to  heighten  her  charms,  milk  baths,  artificial  roses, 
and  cosmetics.  The  rouge-pot,  like  dram-drinking,  grows 
with  habit,  and  the  lady's  cheeks  became  so  ruddy  that  they 
were  the  byword  of  the  court.  There  was  a  quaint  conceit 
that  the  water  peas  were  boiled  in  was  an  infallible  test  of 
rouge,  and  the  monkeyish  Max,  having  a  grudge  against 
the  Countess,  procured  a  bottle  of  this  decoction  from  the 
kitchen,  and  on  the  occasion  of  a  court  ceremonial,  when 
she  appeared  in  full  war  paint,  he  squirted  some  in  her  face, 
with  the  result  that  she  had  to  retire  amid  the  suppressed 
titters  of  the  assembly.  The  Countess,  boiling  with  rage, 
complained  to  Ernest  Augustus,  and  the  offender  was 
severely  reprimanded  and  locked  up  in  his  room  for  many 
days.  The  punishment  was  not  a  heavy  one,  but  it  served  to 
engender  bad  blood  between  the  father  and  son,  and  after 
he  was  liberated  we  find  Maximilian  intriguing  with  his  two 
brothers,  Augustus  and  Charles,  against  his  eldest  brother, 
George  Louis,  and  his  father. 

Ernest  Augustus's  great  desire  was  to  add  to  the  lustre 
of  the  House  of  Brunswick-Liineburg.  To  this  end  he 
sought  to  unite  the  duchies  of  Celle  and  Hanover,  and  he 
established  primogeniture.  He  made  his  eldest  son  heir  to 
all  lands  and  territory,  and  only  allotted  to  his  other  sons 
moderate  sums  of  money  whereby  to  support  their  dignity. 
This  policy  was  the  opposite  to  that  pursued  by  his  ancestors 
and  by  most  of  the  German  princes  of  his  time,  who  in  their 
wills  were  in  the  habit  of  dividing  their  territory  among  all 
their  sons.  It  is  no  wonder,  therefore,  that  the  younger 


78    THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

princes  of  Brunswick-Luneburg  disliked  the  innovation,  pro- 
tested noisily  against  it,  and  intrigued  for  its  overthrow. 
The  Duchess  Sophia  also  disliked  it.  The  disaffection  was" 
this  time  nipped  in  the  bud  by  the  vigilance  of  Countess 
Platen,  who  tried  to  implicate  Sophie  Dorothea  in  the  plot, 
but  nothing  could  be  proved  against  her.  It  is  possible 
that  she  had  a  hand  in  it,  for  the  terms  of  her  marriage 
settlement,  which  practically  cut  her  off  from  inheriting 
territory,  and  left  her  at  the  mercy  of  her  husband,  were  so 
unfavourable  that  she  might  be  pardoned  if  she  tried  to  alter 
them  to  her  advantage. 

These  things  did  not  tend  to  improve  Sophie  Dorothea's 
position  at  Hanover.  Her  best  friend,  Ernest  Augustus, 
suspected  her  of  intriguing  against  him,  and  George  Louis 
disliked  her  the  more  because  he  thought  she  wished  to 
upset  the  marriage  settlement ;  except  Eleonore  Knese- 
beck,  she  had  not  a  friend  to  whom  she  could  turn.  It  is 
hard  to  imagine  a  more  difficult  position,  but  her  cup  of 
suffering  was  not  yet  full. 

Mention  has  been  made  of  the  unsuccessful  efforts  of 
Countess  Platen  to  enamour  George  Louis  again  with  her 
sister,  Madame  Bussche,  who  had  now  returned  to  Hanover 
a  widow.  It  was  the  policy  of  Countess  Platen  to  widen 
the  breach  between  George  Louis  and  Sophie  Dorothea  by 
every  possible  means,  and,  knowing  the  young  Princess's 
jealous  disposition,  she  felt  that  the  most  efficacious  way 
to  prevent  a  reconciliation  would  be  to  engage  the  Prince 
in  another  intrigue.  Madame  Bussche  having  ceased  to 
charm,  she  must  find  some  one  else.  The  lady  whom 
she  chose  as  a  decoy  was  Ermengarda  Melusina  Schu- 
lenburg,1  the  daughter  of  an  illustrious  and  noble  house, 
who  might  have  been  capable  of  better  things.  But  Er- 
mengarda Melusina,  not  being  over  -  endowed  with  this 
world's  goods,  was  anxious  to  settle  herself  honourably 
if  she  could,  dishonourably  if  no  other  chance  offered, 
according  to  the  custom  of  the  time.  Schulenburg  had 
recently  arrived  at  Hanover,  and  had  stayed  at  Monplaisir. 
Countess  Platen  took  her  up,  presented  her  at  court,  and 
established  her  there  as  a  lady-in-waiting.  Ermengarda 
Melusina  seemed  of  a  docile  and  confiding  disposition,  and 

1  Many  years  later  Duchess  of  Kendal. 


79 

Countess  Platen  thought  she  would  find  in  her  a  willing 
tool ;  but  though  she  made  no  pretensions  to  wit,  and 
was  slow  of  speech,  she  was  shrewd,  more  shrewd  than  her 
chaperone  gave  her  credit.  In  appearance  she  was  the 
opposite  to  Sophie  Dorothea ;  her  features  were  of  the 
heavy  German  type,  and  she  was  of  gigantic  height  (the 
Duchess  Sophia  called  her  "  the  tall  Malkin ")  ;  but,  en 
revanche,  she  was  only  nineteen,  had  good  features,  large 
blue  eyes,  fair  hair,  and  a  fine  figure.  The  Countess  intro- 
duced her  to  George  Louis  on  his  return  from  Hungary. 
As  he  was  short  himself,  he  admired  tall  women,  and  was 
much  struck  by  Ermengarda  Melusina's  large  and  placid 
charms,  and  began  to  pay  her  marked  attention.  He  was 
seen  with  her  everywhere,  riding  with  her  in  the  hunting- 
field,  seated  next  to  her  at  the  play,  and  leading  her  out  at 
the  dance.  His  wife  was  openly  neglected  for  this  new 
rival. 

To  do  Emengarda  Melusina  justice,  she  was  not  spiteful 
nor  aggressive,  nor  desirous  in  any  way  to  injure  Sophie 
Dorothea.  At  first  she  hung  back  from  the  glittering 
prospect  before  her,  but  being  very  poor,  and,  as  subsequent 
history  proves,  very  avaricious,  she  did  not  hold  out  long, 
and  then  surrendered  at  discretion. 

About  this  time  the  Countess  Platen  consoled  Madame 
Bussche  for  the  loss  of  her  power  over  the  Prince  of  Hanover 
by  marrying  her  in  second  wedlock  to  General  Weyhe,  who 
must  indeed  have  been  a  bold  man,  for  Bussche  had  only 
been  dead  a  few  months,  and  it  was  well  known  that  his 
death  had  been  accelerated  by  his  wife's  extravagance, 
bad  temper,  and  misconduct.  Probably  Weyhe  was  in- 
duced to  marry  the  widow  on  the  strength  of  promises  of 
promotion. 

Countess  Platen  resolved  to  make  her  sister's  nuptials 
the  occasion  of  proclaiming,  more  or  less  informally,  George 
Louis's  infatuation  for  Schulenburg,  and  with  a  refinement 
of  cruelty  she  tried  to  induce  Sophie  Dorothea  to  be  present. 
Though  Sophie  Dorothea  always  treated  Countess  Platen 
with  coldness,  that  lady  maintained  the  semblance  of  re- 
spect for  the  rank,  if  not  the  person,  of  the  Princess,  and 
she  waited  upon  her  to  invite  her  to  the  wedding  festivities, 
and  in  the  course  of  the  interview  dropped  many  hints  and 
veiled  taunts  wrapped  up  in  the  cloak  of  flattery.  Sophie 


8o    THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

Dorothea  had  the  good  sense  to  keep  her  temper.  She 
declined  the  invitation  on  the  plea  of  ill-health,  but  said 
that  she  would  send  Eleonore  Knesebeck  to  represent  her. 
The  wedding  was  celebrated  with  much  splendour  at 
General  Weyhe's  country  residence  a  few  miles  from 
Hanover.  After  the  ceremony  there  was  a  banquet,  and 
dancing  followed  in  the  evening.  The  Prince  of  Hanover 
honoured  the  occasion  with  his  presence,  and  so  did  his 
brothers,  who,  though  they  hated  Countess  Platen,  were 
ready  to  go  anywhere  to  enjoy  themselves  ;  but  neither  the 
Duchess  Sophia  nor  the  Princess  was  present.  Eleonore 
Knesebeck  was  there  to  represent  the  latter.  The  great 
personages  at  the  feast,  far  eclipsing  the  bride  and  bride- 
groom, were  Ermengarda  Melusina,  decked  in  jewels,  and 
her  lover,  George  Louis,  who  paid  her  so  much  attention 
that  every  one  noticed  it,  and,  when  he  led  her  forth  to  the 
dance,  Weyhe  and  his  wife  had  to  take  a  second  place  at 
their  own  festivities.  When  Knesebeck  returned  to  the 
palace  she  found  Sophie  Dorothea  waiting  up  for  her  in 
great  agitation  ;  nor  was  she  content  until  she  had  had  a 
recital  of  the  whole  affair,  and  learned  that  she  was  openly 
flouted  in  the  capital  of  the  duchy. 

From  this  time  George  Louis's  amour  with  Ermengarda 
Melusina  assumed  a  recognised  phase.  She  was  sumptu- 
ously lodged,  and  he  visited  her  daily,  and  spent  most  of 
his  time  with  her.  In  this  he  was  only  imitating  his  father, 
and,  when  all  was  said  and  done,  Schulenburg  was  much 
less  offensive  than  Platen.  Unlike  her  mother-in-law, 
Sophie  Dorothea  writhed  and  raged  under  her  husband's 
infidelity,  but  she  could  obtain  no  redress.  The  Duchess 
Sophia,  true  to  her  policy,  declined  to  interfere,  and  to 
appeal  to  Ernest  Augustus  was  useless  ;  in  her  despair  she 
turned  to  Celle,  and  made  complaint  to  her  parents.  From 
her  mother,  who  was  helpless,  she  got  both  love  and 
sympathy  ;  from  her  father  she  received  neither.  A  change 
had  come  over  the  spirit  of  George  William's  dream,  for 
Bernstorff  had  plied  him  with  many  tales  to  the  detriment 
of  his  wife  and  daughter.  So  he  bade  Sophie  Dorothea  to 
keep  her  place,  imitate  the  example  of  her  estimable  mother- 
in-law,  and  ignore  such  trifles,  and  he  further  exhorted  her 
to  be  more  amenable  to  her  husband,  and  not  to  give  way 
to  temper.  Thus  repulsed  in  the  quarter  where  she  looked 


THE  POWER  OF  COUNTESS  PLATEN  81 

for  help,  the  unhappy  Princess  knew  not  where  to  turn  ;  she 
was  friendless  and  alone,  unguided  and  unaided,  ready  to 
seize  at  any  means  of  avenging  her  wounded  pride.  At 
this  juncture  her  evil  genius  came  upon  the  scene  in  the 
person  of  Philip  Christopher,  Count  Konigsmarck. 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

ENTER  KONIGSMARCK. 

(1688-1689.) 

...  he  seem'd  the  goodliest  man 
That  ever  among  ladies  ate  in  hall. 

TENNYSON. 

COUNT  PHILIP  CHRISTOPHER  KONIGSMARCK  had  led  an 
adventurous  life  since  the  day  when,  a  handsome  youth,  he 
parted  from  the  Princess  at  Celle,  ten  years  before.  He 
had  grown  to  man's  estate,  travelled  far  and  wide,  and 
distinguished  himself  for  audacity  in  many  adventures  and 
gallantry  in  many  courts.  He  came  to  Hanover  with  the 
reputation  of  being  a  brilliant,  dashing  young  nobleman,  a 
reputation  which  his  wealth  and  personal  beauty  did  much 
to  heighten. 

Count  Philip  Christopher  Konigsmarck,  who  was  borri 
in  I665,1  was  the  second  son  of  a  Swedish  nobleman,  the 
famous  General  Count  Konigsmarck,  who  was  killed  at  the 
siege  of  Bonne  in  1673,  leaving  behind  him  two  sons  and 
two  daughters.  Of  the  elder  son  more  anon.  One  of  the 
daughters,  Amalie  Wilhelmina,  had  married  Count  Carl 
Gustav  Lewenhaupt ;  the  other,  Marie  Aurora,  was  still 
unwed,  and  was  distinguished  throughout  Europe  for  her 
grace  and  beauty. 

The  Konigsmarck  brothers  and  sisters  were  peculiar 
products  of  the  seventeenth  century  ;  they  were  wealthy, 
endowed  with  rare  talents,  great  beauty,  and  noble  birth, 
and,  had  they  been  so  minded,  could  have  lived  and  died  in 
their  native  land  honoured  and  respected  by  all.  But  the 
spirit  of  adventure  was  in  their  blood.  The  brothers  were 
military  adventurers,  and  the  sisters  court  favourites,  to  use 

1  The  vexed  question  of  the  date  of  Konigsmarck's  birth  is  settled  by 
Count  Adam  Lewenhaupt  in  an  article  in  Historisk  Tidskrift,  Stockholme, 
1898,  in  which  he  quotes  from  documents  deposited  in  the  Record  Office, 
Stockholme. 

82 


ENTER  KONIGSMARCK  83 

no  harsher  word,  and  they  each  and  all  of  them  were  con- 
spicuous figures  at  the  most  brilliant  courts  of  Europe. 
Most  of  the  beautiful  adventuresses  of  this  period  were  the 
daughters  of  poor  noblemen.  But  the  Countesses  Konigs- 
marck  could  not  plead  poverty  for  embarking  on  their 
glittering  and  eventful  careers  ;  with  them,  as  with  their 
brothers,  the  incentives  must  have  been  the  spirit  of  rest- 
lessness pure  and  simple,  the  passion  for  display,  and  the 
love  of  notoriety,  which  through  all  ages  have  been  powerful 
attractions  to  men  and  women  of  their  temperament. 

The  elder  brother,  Count  Carl  John  Konigsmarck,  began 
his  travels  when  a  boy.  He  accompanied  his  uncle,  the 
celebrated  Count  Otho  William,  sometime  Field-Marshal 
of  France,  and  afterwards  Governor  of  Swedish  Pomerania, 
on  a  tour  through  the  greater  part  of  Europe.  He  visited 
England  in  1674.  Soon  after  we  find  him  figuring  at 
Versailles.  Later  he  joined  an  expedition  of  the  Knights 
of  Malta  against  the  Turks,  when  he  nearly  cut  short  his 
promising  career  by  tumbling  into  the  sea  ;  but  he  was 
dragged  out  half  drowned,  for  the  Konigsmarck  family,  likje 
cats,  appeared  to  have  nine  lives.  Later  we  find  him  at 
Rome,  Venice,  and  Genoa,  and  then  proceeding  through 
Portugal  to  Spain.  At  the  court  of  Madrid  he  was  an 
honoured  guest,  and  figured  with  great  eclat  at  the  festivities 
consequent  on  the  marriage  of  the  King.  During  these 
festivities  he  took  part  in  a  bull-fight,  wherein  he  distin- 
guished himself  by  his  quickness  and  courage,  and  again 
met  with  an  accident  which  nearly  cost  him  his  life.  He 
was  badly  gored  by  a  bull,  but,  bleeding  and  wounded, 
continued  to  fight  until  he  was  carried  fainting  out  of  the 
arena.  The  Spanish  ladies  were  delighted  with  his  pluck, 
and  unanimously  declared  him  to  be  one  of  the  most  gallant 
cavaliers  that  had  ever  visited  Madrid.  After  these  ex- 
periences he  returned  to  Sweden  for  a  time. 

He  found  there  Philip  Christopher,  his  younger  brother, 
who  had  returned  to  the  family  nest  from  the  court  of  Celle, 
where  his  presence  was  no  longer  welcome.  It  was  resolved 
to  send  him  to  England  to  complete  his  education,  and  Carl 
John,  who  had  been  in  England  before,  undertook  the  charge 
of  his  young  brother.  The  two  brothers  sailed  from  Gothen- 
burg, in  i68i,and,  after  a  rough  voyage,  landed  at  Hull. 
Count  Carl  John  presented  himself  at  the  court  of  Charles 

6* 


84    THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

II,,  bearing  with  him  a  letter  of  introduction  from  the  King 
of  Sweden.  The  fame  of  his  exploits  had  travelled  before 
him,  and  the  merry  monarch  cordially  welcomed  so  dis- 
tinguished a  gallant,  and  took  a  great  liking  to  him.  Carl 
John  at  once  plunged  into  the  gaieties  of  the  dissipated 
English  court.  His  younger  brother,  Philip  Christopher, 
was  lodged  in  London,  and  sent  to  attend  Foubert's  Academy 
in  the  Haymarket,  a  celebrated  school  of  arms  in  that  day. 
A  man  named  Hanson  was  engaged  to  act  as  his  tutor  and 
watch  over  his  morals  in  the  gay  metropolis,  and,  in  the 
intervals  of  his  military  training  at  Foubert's,  to  prepare 
him  for  entering  the  University  of  Oxford. 

The  rank  and  fortune  of  these  distinguished  youths  and 
the  favour  of  the  court  naturally  gave  them  access  to  the 
great  houses  of  England,  and  we  find  them  on  terms  of  in- 
timacy with  the  highest  of  the  nobility.  This  was  especially 
true  of  the  elder  brother,  who  became  a  general  favourite, 
and  won  the  favour  of  many  of  the  court  beauties.  But 
the  Swedish  noble  sought  more  substantial  advantages. 
Through  the  Dowager-Countess  of  Northumberland  he  be- 
came acquainted  with  her  young  daughter,  the  Countess  of 
Ogle,  who  was  one  of  the  great  heiresses  of  the  day.  This 
lady  was  by  birth  Lady  Elizabeth  Percy,  orphan  daughter 
and  heiress  of  the  eleventh  Earl  of  Northumberland.  She 
was  married  to  Henry  Cavendish,  Earl  of  Ogle,  son  of  the 
Duke  of  Newcastle,  when  only  eleven  years  old,  according 
to  the  evil  practice  of  giving  heiresses  in  wedlock  when 
mere  children  ;  but,  because  she  was  so  young,  she  never 
lived  with  her  husband.  He  died  after  his  marriage  year, 
leaving  his  countess  the  bulk  of  his  fortune,  and  a  greater 
prize  than  ever.  The  unfortunate  child  appeared  in  widow's 
weeds  at  the  court  of  Charles  II.,  and  was  known  as  La 
triste  herittere.  She  had  few  pretensions  to  beauty,  and 
suffered  from  the  fact  that  her  hair  was  bright  red,  which 
in  those  days  was  not  admired,  so  she  was  given  the  ad- 
ditional nickname  of  "  the  Countess  Carrots  ". 

Count  Carl  John  Konigsmarck  resolved  to  win  this 
prize,  and  paid  his  court  to  her  assiduously.  Despite  her 
precocious  training,  Lady  Ogle  was  too  young  to  know  her 
own  mind  ;  but  she  seems  to  have  been  attracted  to  her 
Swedish  suitor  favourably,  and  would  probably  have  yielded 
to  his  pleading  had  not  her  family  discouraged  his  suit. 


ENTER  KONIGSMARCK  85 

Count  Carl  John  came  with  the  strongest  credentials,  and 
the  King's  favour  to  boot,  but  the  Dowager-Countess  of 
Northumberland,  who  shared  the  prevalent  prejudice  against 
foreigners,  sternly  refused  to  hear  a  word  in  his  favour,  and 
shut  the  door  in  his  face. 

Incensed  at  his  unceremonious  rejection,  the  Count 
turned  his  back  on  England  for  a  time.  The  spirit  of 
military  adventure  being  strong  within  him,  he  attached 
himself  to  an  expedition  against  the  Moors,  and  fought  at 
Tangiers  with  great  bravery.  T,he  war  was  of  short  dura- 
tion, and  a  peace  having  been  patched  up  with  the  Moors, 
the  restless  Count  next  joined  a  cruise  against  the  Algerines. 
While  he  was  thus  engaged,  news  came  which  determined 
him  to  return  to  England  without  delay.  Though  rejected 
by  Lady  Ogle's  guardians,  he  had  by  no  means  given  up 
the  idea  of  winning  her,  and  hoped  by  distinguishing  him- 
self in  the  wars  to  strengthen  his  suit ;  she  was  still  so  young 
that  they  could  afford  to  wait  a  while,  and  doubtless  he  felt 
that  his  doughty  deeds  would  make  her  heart  grow  fonder. 
Whether  they  did  so  or  not  mattered  little,  for  her  heart 
was  the  last  thing  that  Lady  Ogle's  guardians  took  into 
consideration  ;  they  felt  the  care  of  the  child  heiress  a  great 
responsibility,  and  resolved  to  settle  her  safely  as  soon  as 
possible.  Therefore,  in  Count  Carl  John's  absence,  they 
married  her  privately,  much  against  her  will,  to  a  country 
gentleman,  Mr.  Thomas  Thynne,  of  Longleat,  in  Wiltshire, 
commonly  called  "  Tom  of  Ten  Thousand  "  from  his  wealth, 
— ten  thousand  a  year  in  those  days  being  considered  an 
immense  fortune.  The  match  was  a  suitable  one  as  regards 
money  and  position,  but  in  other  respects  it  was  disastrous. 
Thynne  was  a  young  man  of  debauched  habits,  whom  Dry- 
den  lampooned  as  Issachar  in  his  Absalom  and  Ahithophel. 
This  marriage,  like  the  previous  one,  was  never  consum- 
mated. The  pair  separated  immediately  the  ceremony  was 
concluded,  and  the  young  bride  fled  to  Holland  to  escape 
from  her  second  husband.  She  was  then  only  fourteen 
years  old  ! 

Count  Carl  John  took  upon  himself  the  role  of  champion 
of  the  distressed  damsel  ;  he  considered  that  he  had  been 
tricked  and  the  lady  betrayed,  and  by  some  crooked  reason- 
ing he  persuaded  himself  that  if  he  could  only  get  Thynne 
out  of  the  way  he  would  secure  the  heiress  and  the  fortune 


86    THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

for  himself.  Full  of  this  idea  he  arrived  in  London  early  in 
1682,  accompanied  by  a  Captain  Vratz,  a  dare-devil  fellow 
who  had  followed  him  in  all  his  campaigns,  and  was  abso- 
lutely devoted  to  his  interests.  This  time  the  Count  did 
not  present  himself  at  court,  but  took  private  lodgings  and 
remained  hidden,  on  account,  he  afterwards  said,  of  some 
skin  disease  he  had  picked  up  in  Morocco  which  made  him 
unfit  to  appear  in  public.  He  saw  no  one  but  his  younger 
brother,  Philip  Christopher,  who  was  still  pursuing  his 
studies  at  Foubert's  Academy,  and  Vratz.  It  is  impossible 
to  say  what  dark  schemes  were  hatched  in  Carl  John's 
lodgings,  but  we  know  for  certain  that  Vratz,  who  was  a 
noted  duellist,  tried  to  fasten  a  quarrel  upon  Thynne,  but 
that  gentleman  declined  his  challenge  and  refused  to  meet 
him.  Vratz  was  determined  to  encompass  his  destruction, 
and,  since  he  could  not  kill  him  in  what  was  known  as  an 
"  honourable  way,"  he  hired  two  swashbucklers,  Lieutenant 
Stern,  a  needy  rogue,  and  Borosky,  a  Pole,  who  had  come 
from  Sweden  with  horses  for  Count  Carl  John,  to  act  as  his 
seconds  or  confederates,  and  again  endeavoured  to  provoke 
his  adversary.  But  Thynne  obstinately  refused  to  come 
out,  and,  failing  in  his  endeavour  to  murder  him  legally, 
Vratz  determined  to  despatch  him  in  some  other  way.  It 
chanced  in  this  wise.  One  afternoon,  just  when  the  dusk 
was  falling,  Thynne  was  driving  in  Pall  Mall  with  his  boon 
companion,  the  Duke  of  Monmouth.  He  put  the  Duke 
down  at  his  lodging,  and  drove  on,  but  his  coach  had  not 
proceeded  more  than  a  few  yards  when  it  was  stopped  by 
three  mounted  men,  one  of  whom,  Vratz,  seized  the  horses, 
another,  Stern,  knocked  down  the  postillion,  and  the  third, 
Borosky,  thrust  a  blunderbuss  in  at  the  coach  window  and 
discharged  it  at  Thynne.  The  three  desperadoes  then 
made  off,  leaving  their  victim  so  dangerously  wounded  that 
he  died  in  a  few  hours.  There  was  a  great  hue  and  cry. 
The  position  and  wealth  of  the  murdered  man,  and  the  fact 
that  such  a  deed  had  been  committed  openly  in  a  frequented 
thoroughfare  like  Pall  Mall,  was  too  much  even  for  that  time. 
The  law  was  invoked  at  once,  and  the  three  assassins  were 
captured  and  thrown  into  jail  to  await  their  trial.  Count 
Carl  John  was  arrested  as  an  accessory  before  the  fact.  He 
denied  that  he  had  any  knowledge  of  the  murder,  but  arms 
were  found  at  his  lodgings  ;  it  was  proved  that  he  had 


ENTER  KONIGSMARCK  87 

made  inquiries  as  to  Thynne's  whereabouts,  and  it  was 
even  hinted  that  the  young  lady,  anxious  to  be  rid  of  her 
obnoxious  husband,  secretly  encouraged  him.  There  does 
not  seem  to  be  any  proof  of  this  slander.  Lady  Ogle  (or 
Elizabeth  Thynne)  was  a  girl,  and  absent  abroad  ;  that  she 
may  have  wished  to  be  rid  of  her  husband  is  likely,  and, 
under  the  circumstances,  natural,  but  it  is  impossible  to 
believe  that  she  connived  at  his  murder. 

The  trial  took  place  in  February,  1682,  and  was  one  of 
the  most  celebrated  trials  of  the  reign,  equalling  in  interest, 
if  not  importance,  the  notorious  Popish  plots.  The  whole 
town  was  in  a  ferment,  and  for  days  nothing  else  was 
talked  about.  The  murdered  man  had  many  friends  of 
influence  and  position,  who  were  determined  to  bring  his 
assassins  to  the  gallows,  and  popular  opinion  was  with  them. 
On  the  other  hand,  the  King's  influence  was  known  to  be 
in  favour  of  Count  Carl  John ;  he  had  come  to  him  with 
an  introduction  from  the  King  of  Sweden,  and  he  was 
unwilling  that  so  distinguished  an  ornament  of  courts  and 
so  brave  a  soldier  should  end  his  days  by  means  of  the 
common  hangman.  Among  the  witnesses  for  the  defence 
was  Philip  Christopher's  tutor,  from  whose  evidence  may  be 
gleaned  many  particulars  of  the  younger  brother's  sojourn 
in  England  :  for  instance,  that  he  had  been  sick  of  the  ague, 
that  he  had  been  on  visits  to  certain  of  the  nobility,  that  he 
was  about  to  leave  Foubert's  Academy  and  go  to  Oxford, 
and  lastly,  that  he,  a  distinguished  foreigner,  had  been 
brought  to  England  to  be  instructed  in  the  Protestant 
religion  and  a  proper  knowledge  of  our  free  and  enlightened 
institutions, — this  point  was  supposed  to  carry  great  weight 
with  the  jury.  Young  Philip  Christopher  also  gave  evidence 
in  his  brother's  defence.  The  judge  could  not  understand 
why  Borosky  had  come  over  from  Sweden.  Philip  Chris- 
topher said  that  his  brother  had  sent  for  him  because  he 
was  a  great  judge  of  horses,  and  he  wished  to  buy  some, 
not  only  for  himself,  but  for  him.  "  My  lord,"  said  he,  "  I 
had  a  bill  of  exchange."  "  For  how  much  money,  my 
lord?"  inquired  the  Lord  Chief  Justice  Pemberton.  "For 
a  thousand  pistoles  to  buy  horses,  and  he  has  bought  one 
horse  and  wants  to  buy  more."  This  testimony,  preposter- 
ous though  it  may  seem,  carried  weight  with  the  Lord 
Chief  Justice,  who  evidently  had  a  hint  from  the  King. 


88    THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

In  his  summing-up  he  greatly  favoured  Count  Carl  John 
Konigsmarck,  and  the  result  was  a  verdict  of  "Guilty" 
against  the  three  desperadoes,  but  "  Not  Guilty "  against 
Carl  John.  The  Count  thus  escaped  ;  and,  when  he  heard 
the  verdict,  there  was  a  scene  in  court,  for  the  acquitted 
man  had  the  audacity  to  exclaim,  "  God  bless  the  King 
and  his  honourable  Bench  !  "  whereat  followed  great  uproar. 

The  three  accomplices  were  hanged  in  chains.  Count 
Carl  John,  though  he  saved  his  neck,  ruined  his  reputation 
in  England.  The  tide  of  feeling  was  strongly  against  him. 
The  King  plainly  told  him  that  he  could  do  no  more,  and 
the  coldness  of  the  court,  the  hostility  of  the  nobility,  and 
the  threats  of  the  populace  combined  to  make  him  quit 
England  for  ever.  He  repaired  to  the  court  of  Versailles, 
where  his  recent  experiences  rather  added  to  his  reputation 
than  otherwise.  While  there  he  had  the  audacity  to  renew 
his  suit  to  Lady  Ogle  (or  Elizabeth  Thynne),  now  widowed 
for  the  second  time,  but  she  would  have  nothing  more  to  do 
with  him.  She  probably  felt,  and  rightly,  that  to  marry 
such  a  man  would  be  to  implicate  herself  in  his  crime.  She 
went  into  mourning  for  her  husband — or,  rather,  "  did  not 
appear  public,"  as  the  phrase  went — for  some  six  or  seven 
weeks  ;  she  then  returned  to  England,  and  married  Charles 
Seymour,  third  Duke  of  Somerset,  and  added  her  colossal 
fortune  to  his.  The  marriage  was  on  the  whole  a  happy 
one,  and  she  and  the  Duke  were  important  and  powerful 
personages  at  the  court  of  Queen  Anne. 

Count  Carl  John  returned  to  his  estates  in  Sweden,  but 
he  could  not  brook  the  quiet  of  country  life,  and  soon 
plunged  again  into  the  dangerous  delights  of  war.  War  in 
those  days  was  a  game  at  which  emperors,  kings,  and 
military  adventurers  played  for  a  pastime,  the  soldiers  being 
the  pawns  in  the  game.  Carl  John  was  wounded  at  the 
siege  of  Cambray  ;  he  then  followed  his  regiment  to  Spain, 
and  distinguished  himself  at  the  siege  of  Verona.  The  last 
stage  of  his  eventful  career  was  when,  in  1686,  he  went  with 
his  uncle,  Otho  William,  to  the  Morea  ;  he  took  part  in 
divers  sieges  and  battles,  and  so  exerted  himself  that  he 

brought  on  an  attack  of  pleurisy,  of  which  he  died.1 

• 

1  We  have  dwelt  thus  on  the  career  of  Count  Carl  John  Konigsrharck 
because  Horace  Walpole  and  other  chroniclers  have  fallen  into  the  error  of 
confounding  him  with  his  younger  brother,  Philip  Christopher ;  and  Horace 


ENTER  KONIGSMARCK  89 

Though  Count  Philip  Christopher  Konigsmarck  (now, 
by  the  death  of  his  brother,  Count  Konigsmarck)  had 
nothing  to  do  with  the  murder  of  Thynne,  yet  this  un- 
toward event  influenced  his  fortunes  not  a  little.  The  name 
of  Konigsmarck  had  become  so  odious  in  England  after  this 
affair  that,  despite  the  young  Count's  admitted  innocence, 
the  court  could  not  be  brought  to  look  upon  him  with  favour, 
and  so  he  abandoned  the  idea  of  going  to  Oxford  and  left 
England  for  France.  He  was  at  Versailles  some  time  ;  he 
then  travelled  through  France  and  other  countries,  This 
was  a  period  of  peace  in  the  history  of  Europe  ;  the  great 
war  which  was  concluded  by  the  Treaty  of  Ryswick  was  not 
begun  until  some  years  later  (1689),  and  so  there  was  no 
opening  for  Konigsmarck's  military  talents.  It  is  not  easy 
to  follow  his  career  during  this  period,  but  on  leaving  France 
he  seems  to  have  gone  to  the  court  of  Dresden,  and  proceeded 
with  his  military  studies,  and  while  there  to  have  formed 
a  friendship  with  Prince  Frederick  Augustus  of  Saxony 
(Augustus  the  Strong),  and  to  have  accompanied  him  on 
his  travels  in  Spain,  Portugal  and  Italy.  We  know  that  he 
was  in  Venice,  and  probably  other  parts  of  Italy,  about  this 
time,  and  we  find  him  figuring  in  his  own  letters  as  carrying 
on  a  liaison  with  a  beautiful  Italian  lady  connected  with 
literature. 

From  1682  (the  date  of  the  famous  trial)  to  1688 
Konigsmarck's  career  is  involved  in  uncertainty.  One 
thing,  however,  is  certain,  that  he  appeared  in  Hanover 
on  March  12,  1688.  This  we  learn  from  the  records  of 
the  Hanoverian  Marshal  von  Malortie.1  Herein  it  is  stated 
that  Konigsmarck  was  present  at  an  entertainment  given  by 
the  Prince  and  Princess  of  Hanover  on  the  occasion  of  some 
public  festival.  Before  this  date  there  is  no  mention  of  his 
name  in  any  contemporary  records  of  Hanover,  and  after 
this  it  occurs  frequently  ;  we  are  therefore  justified  in  sup- 
posing that  Konigsmarck  did  not  appear  at  Hanover  before 
1688.  The  point  is  important,  more  important  than  appears 
at  first  sight,  because  it  has  been  stated  that  Konigsmarck 
was  in  Hanover  at  an  earlier  date  than  1688,  and  formed 

Walpole  even  goes  so  far  as  to  describe  Philip  Christopher,  in  his  Reminis- 
cences of  the  Court  of  George  II.,  as  the  murderer  of  Thynne,  which  he 
certainly  was  not. 

1  Published  in  Hanover,  1847,  under  the  title  of  Dcr  Haiinovcrsche  Hof. 


90    THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

an  intimacy  with  Sophie  Dorothea  before  the  birth  of  her 
daughter,  thereby  casting  doubts  on  the  legitimacy  of  her 
daughter,  afterwards  Queen  of  Prussia,  and  so  upon  the 
Imperial  House  of  Germany.  But  there  is  no  proof  what- 
ever (everything  points  the  other  way)  that  Konigsmarck 
was  in  Hanover  before  1688,  one  year  after  the  birth  of  the 
Princess. 

We  may  take  it,  there  being  no  evidence  to  the  contrary,, 
that  Konigsmarck's  appearance  at  the  Prince's  festival  was 
synonymous  with  his  arrival  at  the  court  of  Hanover,  and 
on  this  occasion  he  first  met  the  Princess,  Sophie  Dorothea,, 
again,  after  ten  years.  Many  changes  had  taken  place. 
When  they  had  parted  she  was  little  more  than  a  child, 
and  it  cannot  be  supposed  that  their  youthful  intimacy  had 
left  any  deep  impression  on  her  mind.1  With  Konigsmarck 
it  seems  to  have  been  different.  If  we  may  believe  his 
asseverations  later,  he  loved  the  Princess  as  a  child,  and 
never  ceased  to  love  her  all  his  life  long,  even  when  his 
cause  seemed  most  hopeless.  On  this  occasion— their  first 
meeting  after  many  years — there  was  no  hint  of  his  feelings  ; 
he  paid  his  homage  to  the  Princess  of  Hanover  with  the 
formal  respect  due  to  her  rank,  though  he  probably  recalled 
to  her  the  days  they  had  spent  together  at  Celle.  She 
greeted  him  with  pleasure  as  an  old  friend  and  an  acqui- 
sition to  the  court  circle,  and  in  this  latter  view  she  was 
supported  by  Ernest  Augustus,  who  was  always  glad  to 
welcome  distinguished  strangers  to  Hanover,  especially 
when  they  had  money. 

Witty  and  accomplished,  and  withal  generous  and  given 
to  hospitality,  Konigsmarck  soon  became  one  of  the  most 
popular  gallants  about  the  court.  He  did  not  omit,  like 
all  the  young  nobles,  to  pay  his  respects  to  the  powerful 
Countess  Platen  at  Monplaisir,  and  she,  on  her  part,  was 
much  impressed  with  his  handsome  person  and  dashing 

1  The  fact  that  Sophie  Dorothea  and  Konigsmarck  were  children  together 
is  proved  by  a  reference  to  the  Protocol  of  the  judicial  inquiry  with  regard 
to  Fraulein  von  Knesebeck,  tried  before  the  Vice-Chancellor  Hugo  and 
Count  Platen.  In  it  appear  these  questions  : — 

"  How  long  is  it  that  the  Count  and  the  Princess  have  loved  each 
other  ?  "  The  answer  was  :  "  They  have  loved  each  other  from  childhood. 
The  Countess  Rens  (?  Reuss)  has  related  to  me  that  when  they  were  yet 
children  they  loved."  "  How  old  were  they  then  ?  "  "  Nine  or  ten  years." 
"  And  they  always  loved  each  other  ?  "  "  Yes,  that  was  always  so,  and  thus- 
he  came  to  this  court  to  serve." 


ENTER  KONIGSMARCK  91 

manners.  The  fact  that  Countess  Platen  was  attracted  to 
Konigsmarck  would  not  render  him  rnore  agreeable  to  the 
eyes  of  Sophie  Dorothea,  and  it  may  be  doubted  whether 
in  that  year  (1688)  the  Princess  saw  much  of  him,  though 
he  was  at  Hanover  for  some  time. 

Ill-treated  and  rebuffed  on  all  sides,  Sophie  Dorothea's 
troubles  had  begun  to  tell  upon  her  health  ;  the  Prince 
neglected  her  more  and  more  for  Schulenburg,  often  not 
coming  near  her  for  weeks  at  a  time.  Sophie  Dorothea 
felt  this  slight  keenly,  and  one  day  visited  her  husband  in 
his  apartments  and  demanded  an  explanation  of  his  cold- 
ness and  neglect.  Was  it  due  to  any  fault  on  her  part  ? 
she  asked  pitifully,  because  if  so  she  would  endeavour  to 
regulate  her  conduct  to  his  wishes.  But  George  Louis 
would  not  give  her  any  explanation,  and  ordered  her  out 
of  the  room.  Sophie  Dorothea's  temper  was  never  much 
under  control,  and  she  lost  it  altogether  at  this  rude  rebuff. 
High  words  ensued  between  the  unhappy  pair ;  they  had 
a  more  violent  quarrel  than  ever  before,  and  it  was  said 
that  George  Louis  used  personal  violence  to  expel  her 
from  his  presence.  When  at  last  the  Princess  returned  to 
her  apartments  her  agitation  was  so  great  that  it  brought 
on  a  nervous  prostration,  and  some  say  a  miscarriage. 
For  some  time  she  was  confined  to  her  bed,  and  so  ill  that 
the  Duchess  Sophia,  who  generally  held  aloof  and  ignored 
her,  interposed  on  behalf  of  the  neglected  wife.  The 
Duchess  Sophia  did  not  view  the  Schulenburg  affair  with 
any  favour,  and  reprimanded  her  son  so  severely  that 
George  Louis  was  forced  for  a  time  to  pay  his  wife  some 
attention — that  is  to  say,  he  would  come  and  sit  by  her 
bedside  for  a  few  minutes,  and  sullenly  inquire  after  her 
health. 

When  Sophie  Dorothea  rallied  a  little,  the  Duchess 
Sophia  took  her  off  to  Herrenhausen  with  her  children, 
and  paid  her  every  care  and  attention  :  this  at  least  must 
be  noted  to  her  credit.  It  was  probably  during  this  period 
that  the  Duchess  gave  her  daughter-in-law  those  long 
lectures  on  English  history  which  Poellnitz  describes  with 
such  unconscious  humour.1  They  lasted  hours  at  a  stretch, 

1  Histoire  Secrette  de  la  Duchesse  d' Hanover,  Epouse  de  Georges  Premier, 
etc.,  said  to  be  written  by  the  Baron  von  Poellnitz.  Published  in  French, 
London,  1732.  This  work  is  not  trustworthy. 


<)2          THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

and  poor  Sophie  Dorothea  had  to  listen  to  the  end,  though 
often  tired  and  bored,  for  she  had  not  the  same  interest 
in  English  affairs  as  her  mother-in-law.  Sometimes  she 
seems  to  have  dropped  a  hint  to  this  effect,  for  we  find  the 
Duchess  Sophia  rebuking  her  want  of  interest,  and  telling 
her  it  was  necessary  that  she  should  know  the  history  of 
a  country  over  which  she  might  one  day  be  called  to  reign 
as  Queen  Consort,  and,  if  so,  she  trusted  she  would  do  her 
duty.  This  provoked  Sophie  Dorothea's  retort  that  if  ever 
she  were  Queen  of  England  she  hoped  she  would  have 
more  sense  than  to  run  away  and  leave  the  crown  as  King 
James  had  done ;  for  the  flight  of  King  James  and  the 
accession  of  William  and  Mary  had  just  then  astonished 
Europe,  and  were  events  especially  agitating  the  mind  of 
King  James's  first  cousin,  Sophia,  whose  sympathies  at 
this  period  were  secretly  with  the  exiled  monarch  and  his 
family,  notwithstanding  the  ties  of  self-interest.1 

After  a  time  some  sort  of  wretched  truce  was  patched 
up  between  the  ill-mated  couple,  probably  through  the 
mediation  of  the  Duchess  Sophia,  and  Sophie  Dorothea 
returned  to  her  apartments  in  the  Old  Palace  and  to  out- 
ward union  with  her  husband. 

Konigsmarck  had  then  left  Hanover  for  a  period.  The 
death  of  his  uncle,  Count  Otho  William,  in  the  latter  part 
of  1688,  called  him  to  Italy,  and  in  the  February  of  the 
following  year  we  find  him  attending  the  splendid  obsequies 
of  that  distinguished  relative  at  Venice,  for  Count  Otho 
William  was  not  buried  until  many  months  after  he  died. 
By  his  brother's  death  Konigsmarck  had  become  a  rich 
man  ;  by  his  uncle's  death  he  became  one  of  the  wealthiest 
noblemen  in  Europe,  and  the  splendour  of  his  equipages, 
the  lavishness  of  his  entertainments,  and  his  reputation  for 
gallantry  made  him  an  acquisition  to  any  court.  He  was 
one  of  Fortune's  favourites :  born  in  the  purple,  entering 
upon  a  large  inheritance  while  yet  a  young  man,  he  had 
the  opportunity  of  making  the  most  of  the  good  gifts 
Fortune  showered  upon  him.  Every  court  in  Europe 
was  open  to  him  ;  there  were  many  capital  cities  where 
he  might  have  found  a  fitting  scene  for  the  spending  of 


1  In    King   William's  chest  was   found   a  large  bundle  marked   "  The 
Electress  Sophia's  correspondence  with  St.  Germains  ". 


ENTER  KONIGSMARCK  93 

his  wealth  and  the  display  of  his  peculiar  talents,  but 
Hanover,  little  Hanover,  drew  him  back  again — whereof 
who  shall  say  ?  He  had  no  ties  there  of  long  standing,  no 
attractions  equal  to  those  of  Versailles  and  Dresden,  no 
friends,  unless  it  were  the  Princess  whom  he  had  known  in 
boyhood,  and  who  was  now  in  a  position  which  should 
have  debarred  intimacy.  Whether  it  was  chance  or  a  set 
plan,  whether  it  was  destiny  or  the  desire  of  the  moth  for 
the  flame,  whatever  it  was,  Konigsmarck  returned  to  Han- 
over, and  from  that  moment  Sophie  Dorothea's  good  angel 
deserted  her. 


CHAPTER  IX. 

PLAYING  WITH  FIRE. 
(1689.) 

Yet  this  joy,  waited  on  by  fear  and  doubt, 
Plucked  casually  as  by  a  flower  of  accident, 
On  the  rough  lip  and  edge  of  danger's  breach, 
How  sweeter  is  it  than  the  rose  to  smell 
We  gather  from  our  garden  with  gloved  hands, 
And  find  nor  thorn,  nor  perfume ! 

SWINBURNE. 

ON  his  return  to  Hanover  Konigsmarck  set  up  a  sump- 
tuous establishment.  He  took  a  house  not  far  from  the 
ducal  palace,  in  a  street  that  was  then  one  of  the  princi- 
pal in  Hanover,  but  which  is  now  one  of  the  few  bits  of 
the  old  town  remaining.  His  beautiful  sister,  the  Countess 
Aurora,  came  to  stay  with  him,  and  his  married  sister  and 
her  husband,  Count  Lewenhaupt,  paid  him  frequent  visits. 
In  addition  to  his  lands  in  Sweden,  Konigsmarck  had  in- 
herited a  large  estate  near  Hamburg,  and  frequently  travelled 
there  from  Hanover.  Some  idea  of  his  establishment  may 
be  gathered  from  the  fact  that  his  secretary,  Hildebrand, 
mentions  on  one  occasion  that  Konigsmarck  was  attended 
by  a  retinue  of  twenty-nine  servants  and  fifty-two  horses 
and  mules.  Where  money  was  concerned  Konigsmarck 
was  absolutely  reckless  ;  his  love  of  pleasure  and  display 
amounted  to  a  passion,  and  the  result  was,  notwithstanding 
his  large  fortune,  he  was  often  in  need  of  ready  money,  and 
had  to  raise  it  at  ruinous  interest.  At  present  his  fortunes 
showed  no  shadow  of  embarrassment.  Hanover  was  dazzled 
by  the  advent  of  this  wealthy  foreigner  ;  the  splendour  of 
his  retinue,  the  magnificence  of  his  entertainments,  and  the 
beauty  of  his  sisters  were  on  every  tongue.  His  fortune 
was  magnified  tenfold,  and  indeed  it  seemed  inexhaustible. 
At  court,  at  the  chase,  at  the  opera,  in  the  ballroom,  at  the 

94 


From  the  fainting  at  Herrenhausen. 


PLAYING  WITH  FIRE  95 

•carnival,  Konigsmarck  carried  all  before  him ;  he  was  the 
central  and  brilliant  figure. 

Duke  Ernest  Augustus  marked  his  appreciation  of 
the  wealthy  foreigner  by  appointing  him  a  colonel  of  his 
Hanoverian  guards.  As  the  troops  of  the  ducal  brothers 
were  allied  in  accordance  with  the  treaty  of  1676,*  he  was 
sometimes  with  his  regiment  at  Hanover,  and  sometimes 
at  Celle,  though  he  was  more  particularly  in  the  service 
of  Hanover.  The  post  gave  him  free  access  to  the  palace, 
and  was  considered  one  of  the  most  honourable  about  the 
court,  elevating  its  holder  to  what  was  known  as  the  third 
degree.  Though  highly  ornamental,  it  was  no  sinecure  ; 
the  pay  was  not  large,  and  in  Konigsmarck's  case  it  may 
have  been  honorary  to  avoid  jealousy  at  the  promotion 
of  a  foreigner.  And  there  was  plenty  to  do.  The  air 
of  Hanover  was  full  of  the  noise  of  military  preparations, 
and  the  prospect  of  active  service  was  especially  attractive 
to  Konigsmarck.  It  was  probably  one  of  his  objects  in 
taking  the  colonelcy  of  the  guards  ;  for  though  his  pleasure- 
loving  soul  delighted  in  the  glitter  of  courts,  the  camp  had 
its  charm  for  him  too.  He  was  a  daring  and  a  skilful  soldier, 
an  expert  in  the  profession  of  arms,  and  many  kings  would 
have  been  glad  of  his  services. 

Konigsmarck  struck  up  a  friendship  with  the  young 
Princes  of  Brunswick-Luneburg,  notably  with  Prince  Charles, 
the  favourite  son  of  the  Duchess  Sophia ;  and  later  he  was 
very  friendly  with  Prince  Ernest,  the  youngest  of  them  all, 
who  was  many  years  his  junior.  Konigsmarck  was  about 
the  same  age  as  the  eldest  Prince,  George  Louis,  and  some 
six  years  older  than  the  Princess  Sophie  Dorothea,  who  was 
at  this  time  in  her  twenty-fourth  year.  His  intimacy  with 

1 A  doubt  has  been  raised  as  to  whether  Konigsmarck  was  ever  in  the 
army  of  Brunswick-Luneburg  at  all,  in  consequence  of  the  trouble  which  was 
taken  subsequently  to  erase  his  name  from  all  official  documents  of  Hanover 
and  Celle  relating  to  the  troops.  But  the  doubt  is  settled  by  the  auditor  of 
his  regiment,  named  Rudiger,  in  his  evidence  in  the  Secret  Senate  Chamber 
of  Hanover  on  July  27,  1694.  Rudiger  stated  he  had  served  in  a  regiment 
of  foot-guards  commanded  by  Konigsmarck  in  Flanders.  He  had  also  served 
in  a  regiment  of  dragoons  in  which  Konigsmarck  held  the  same  rank.  This 
•document  may  be  found  in  the  Archives  of  Saxony,  Royal  Courts  of  Justice, 
Dresden.  The  correspondence  of  Colt,  sometime  English  envoy  at  Hanover, 
also  (as  we  shall  shortly  show)  contains  reference  to  Konigsmarck  as  holding 
a  commission  in  the  Hanoverian  troops.  This  correspondence  is  in  the  State 
Paper  Office,  London. 


96    THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

Prince  Charles,  who  was  a  great  friend  of  Sophie  Dorothea, 
threw  him  frequently  in  her  society.  The  memory  of  their 
early  friendship  helped  matters  considerably.  He  and  the 
Princess  had  many  things  in  common  ;  they  both  possessed 
a  love  of  things  beautiful,  and  their  tastes  were  artistic  and 
refined.  This  refinement  showed  itself  in  Konigsmarck's 
dress,  equipages,  and  entertainments.  His  love  of  display 
never  degenerated  into  vulgarity,  he  could  boast  of  all  the 
superficial  accomplishments,  his  manners  and  address  were 
graceful,  and  on  things  in  general  he  was  remarkably  well  in- 
formed. In  other  ways  Sophie  Dorothea  and  Konigsmarck 
were  curiously  alike.  Both  possessed  highly  strung  and 
mercurial  temperaments.  Both  were  extravagant — Sophie 
Dorothea's  expenditure  formed  the  subject  of  many  a 
lecture  from  her  husband.  Both  loved  amusement,  fine 
clothes,  lavish  entertainment,  balls,  plays,  dances,  and  con- 
tinual excitement.  Both  were  impulsive,  emotional,  impru- 
dent, and  thoughtlessly  generous.  Sophie  Dorothea  was 
much  beloved  by  the  poor  in  Hanover  and  Celle  for  her 
kind  heart,  which  was  always  ready  to  respond  to  the  cry 
of  suffering  and  distress.  Her  indiscriminate  almsgiving  was 
another  grievance  against  her.  It  can  easily  be  imagined 
how  these  two  persons  contrasted  with  the  cold,  sluggish 
natures  around  them,  and  the  stiff  routine  of  the  German 
court.  If  we  bear  in  mind  all  the  forces  at  work,  and  the 
surrounding  circumstances,  the  trend  of  subsequent  events 
appear  almost  inevitable. 

The  Princess  was  very  unhappy,  and  welcomed  Konigs- 
marck as  a  friend.  He  was  not  backward  in  assuring  her 
of  his  respect  and  devotion  ;  his  society  was  pleasant  to 
her,  and  his  evident  homage  flattered  her  vanity.  But  at 
this  time  there  certainly  was  not,  in  the  conduct  of  Sophie 
Dorothea,  anything  which  would  warrant  the  impression  that 
a  deeper  feeling  than  friendship  existed.  In  a  court  of  many 
intrigues  their  friendship  simply  meant  that  Konigsmarck 
ranged  himself  with  the  adherents  of  the  Princess.  Her 
health  was  not  good,  and  she  spent  many  hours  in  retire- 
ment with  her  children.  Konigsmarck  and  Prince  Charles 
would  come  to  see  her,  and  amuse  her  by  telling  her  the 
gossip  of  the  day.  The  Princess  never  saw  any  one  alone, 
but  always  in  the  presence  of  her  lady-in-waiting,  and  the 
pages  were  in  waiting  in  the  antechamber.  There  was  no 


PLAYING  WITH  FIRE  97 

impropriety  in  Konigsmarck's  visits,  and  none  was  at  first 
imagined  ;  but  it  was  playing  with  fire,  for  in  time  the 
Princess  began  to  speak  to  her  friend  of  her  husband's 
ill-treatment  and  neglect.  His  conduct  was  open  and 
notorious,  so  there  was  no  concealment  in  the  matter  ;  but 
though  perhaps  natural,  it  was  very  imprudent  for  her  to 
take  Konigsmarck  into  her  confidence — it  is  a  common- 
place that  a  handsome  young  man  is  about  the  worst 
counsellor  an  ill-used  wife  can  find.  Konigsmarck,  of 
course,  sympathised  deeply,  and  expressed  his  indignation 
in  no  measured  terms  (what  man  would  not  ?),  but  his 
championship  did  more  harm  than  good.  He  seems  to 
have  had  at  this  time  some  idea  of  provoking  George  Louis 
to  fight  a  duel  with  him,  and  so  rid  Sophie  Dorothea  of  an 
unsympathetic  husband.  It  is  related  that  on  one  occasion, 
when  Konigsmarck  was  holding  forth  before  a  large  company 
on  the  superior  splendour  and  attractions  of  the  court  of 
Dresden,  Prince  George  Louis  sarcastically  asked  him  why 
he  ever  left  it.  Konigsmarck  retorted  :  "  Because  I  could 
not  bear  to  see  a  prince  destroy  the  life  and  happiness  of 
his  good  and  beautiful  wife  by  neglecting  her  for  an  im- 
pudent and  worthless  mistress  ! "  The  company  gasped  at 
the  audacity  of  the  answer,  for  though  it  was  true  of  the 
Elector  of  Saxony  it  had  a  double  application  ;  but  cold 
and  sullen  George  Louis  ignored  the  affront  for  the  time 
being,  though  he  never  forgot  it  nor  forgave  it. 

Konigsmarck  made  his  appearance  at  Hanover  at  a 
critical  time  in  the  fortunes  of  the  duchy.  Duke  Ernest 
Augustus  might  well  be  excused  overlooking  domestic 
squabbles  in  the  face  of  the  wider  politics  which  were  con- 
fronting him.  The  peace  of  Europe  was  trembling  in  the 
balance.  The  great  European  coalition  was  forming  against 
Louis  XIV.,  and  the  Duke  of  Hanover  was  temporising  as  to 
whether  he  would  cast  in  his  lot  with  the  French  King  or  with 
the  Allies.  On  the  surface  there  does  not  seem  to  have  been 
any  ground  for  his  hesitation  ;  the  ties  of  religion,  of  blood, 
of  race,  of  honour,  would  naturally  bind  him  to  the  coalition. 
But  these  things  were  nothing  to  Ernest  Augustus  in 
comparison  with  the  promptings  of  self-interest,  and  he 
determined  to  sell  his  support  to  the  highest  bidder. 

The  dispute  between  the  French  King  and  the  Emperor 
Leopold  had  reached  an  acute  phase.  On  the  death  of  the 

7 


98          THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

Elector  Palatine,  Louis  XIV.  had  successfully  invaded  the 
palatinate ;  but  his  position  was  uncertain  at  the  close  of 
1688,  and,  urged  by  the  infamous  counsel  of  Louvois,  he 
determined  to  devastate  that  fair  province.  Villages  were 
burned,  churches  wrecked,  and  thousands  of  families  turned 
out  of  their  homes  and  suffered  to  perish  from  cold  and 
hunger.  The  beautiful  castle  of  the  Elector  Palatine  at 
Heidelberg  and  the  fair  town  of  Mannheim  were  reduced  to 
ruins.  The  wanton  spoliation  and  sacrilege,  the  cruelties 
and  barbarities  committed  by  the  French  army  aroused  the 
indignation  of  Europe.  It  seems  incredible  that  Ernest 
Augustus,  considering  how  closely  he  was  connected  with 
the  palatinate  through  his  marriage,1  could  have  hesitated 
for  one  moment  on  which  side  to  throw  in  his  lot.  But  he 
hesitated. 

The  crusade  against  the  French  King  was  almost  a 
Holy  War.  Louis's  only  ally  in  Europe  was  the  Sultan 
of  Turkey,  whom  he  assisted  against  the  House  of  Austria, 
and  whose  Moslem  cruelties  to  Christians  were  rivalled  by 
this  "  Most  Christian "  King  in  the  atrocities  which  his 
army  committed  in  the  palatinate.  All  Europe  cried  for 
vengeance.  The  Emperor  Leopold,  Catholic  though  he 
was,  made  common  cause  with  the  Protestant  William  of 
Orange,  now  King  of  England.  The  King  of  Spain 
followed  suit,  and  the  German  princes,  both  Catholic  and 
Protestant,  one  by  one  allied  themselves  against  the  King 
of  France.  The  Grand  Monarque  had  no  one  left  on  his 
side  but  the  Sultan,  and  the  exiled  King  James  II.  of 
England,  whose  reproaches  from  St.  Germains  to  their 
Catholic  Majesties  of  Austria  and  Spain  for  allying  them- 
selves with  "  that  Protestant  usurper  and  enemy  of  Holy 
Church,  William,  Prince  of  Orange,"  were  without  avail. 
The  King  of  France  had  proved  himself  a  standing  menace 
to  the  liberties  of  Europe,  and  in  the  common  effort  to 
check  his  aggression  all  minor  differences  gave  way. 
Though  the  Emperor  Leopold  at  first  took  the  lead, 
William  of  Orange  was  the  heart  and  soul  of  the  European 
coalition  against  Louis.  It  was  largely  the  result  of  his  skil- 
ful negotiations  ;  and  many  times  when  it  was  at  the  point 
of  breaking  up,  his  statesmanship  held  it  together. 

1  The  Duchess  Sophia  was  the  daughter  of  one  Elector  Palatine  (the 
''  Winter  King''  of  Bohemia)  and  the  sister  of  another. 


PLAYING  WITH  FIRE  99 

In  the  face  of  so  powerful  a  European  combination  as 
this  it  would  seem  that  the  action  of  a  petty  state  like 
Hanover  mattered  little.  To  the  Emperor  Leopold  it 
mattered  a  good  deal ;  it  was  not  merely  a  question  of 
Hanover  only,  but  of  Hanover  and  Celle,  for  the  troops 
of  the  ducal  brothers  were  allied,  and  they  had  shown 
their  mettle  in  many  a  hard-fought  campaign.  Besides, 
if  Hanover  and  Celle,  so  nearly  allied  to  the  palatinate, 
stood  aloof,  other  little  states  might  do  the  same,  and  the 
unity  of  the  German  confederation  would  be  broken.  To 
William  of  Orange  it  mattered  something,  too,  for  the 
House  of  Hanover  was  nearly  allied  to  the  Stuarts,  and 
if  it  made  common  cause  with  the  protector  of  the  exiled 
King  James,  his  influence  in  England  would  be  sensibly 
weakened. 

Ernest  Augustus,  wily  diplomatist  that  he  was,  esti- 
mated the  advances  of  these  powerful  potentates  at  their 
true  value.  They  wished  for  his  support ;  he  was  willing 
to  sell  it,  but  at  a  high  figure.  His  spouse,  the  estimable 
Sophia,  also  took  a  hand  in  the  game.  Each  had  a 
coveted  desire.  The  price  Ernest  Augustus  demanded  of 
the  Emperor  was  the  electoral  dignity  ;  Sophia  asked  of 
William  of  Orange  a  clearer  recognition  of  her  claim  to 
the  succession  to  the  throne  of  England.  The  Emperor 
demurred.  There  were  then  eight  Electors  in  the  German 
Empire  :  two  Protestant,  Saxony  and  Brandenburg  ;  three 
Roman  Catholic,  Bohemia,  Bavaria,  and  the  Palatinate ; 
and  three  spiritual,  the  prince-archbishops  of  Metz,  Treves, 
and  Cologne.  The  Emperor  had  no  constitutional  power 
to  add  to  their  number,  though  he  might  do  so  by  a  stretch 
of  prerogative.  Besides,  if  such  an  Elector  were  elected, 
or  rather  created,  the  elder  branch  of  the  House  of  Bruns- 
wick— Brunswick-Wolfenbiittel — had  prior  claim.  But 
Ernest  Augustus  remained  firm.  He  even  began  nego- 
tiations with  Versailles,  and  Sophia,  no  whit  behind 
her  spouse  in  intrigue,  opened  up  a  correspondence  with 
St.  Germains.  These  tactics  were  successful ;  both  the 
Emperor  and  William  came  to  terms.  The  Emperor 
promised  the  dignity  of  Elector  to  the  House  of  Bruns- 
wick-Liineburg,  but  under  heavy  stipulations.  The  Dukes 
of  Hanover  and  Celle  bound  themselves  to  support  the 
Emperor  against  the  French  King  and  also  against  the 

7* 


ioo   THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

Turks  in  Morea,  and  to  pay  annually  five  hundred  thousand 
thalers  ;  to  furnish  a  force  of  nine  thousand  men,  and  to 
uphold  the  Hapsburg  dynasty  in  its  dynastic  disputes.  The 
Emperor  held  back  the  formal  bestowal  of  the  coveted 
honour  till  a  more  convenient  season,  but  he  made  a  bind- 
ing promise.  William  of  Orange  promised  to  advance  the 
Duchess  Sophia's  chances  of  succession  to  the  English  throne 
when  he  could,  and  (what  was  far  more  important  to  Ernest 
Augustus)  to  use  his  influence  for  the  House  of  Hanover 
with  the  Emperor.  Thus  did  Hanover  join  the  confedera- 
tion against  France. 

These  matters  settled,  events  moved  rapidly  throughout 
the  winter  of  1688  and  spring  of  1689.  Hanover  resounded 
with  military  preparations,  and  there  was  a  continual  coming 
and  going  of  ministers  and  envoys,  for  the  Allies  hostile  to 
France  were  in  constant  communication  with  one  another. 
The  manifesto  of  the  German  confederation  was  published 
in  February,  that  of  the  States  General  in  March,  that  of 
Brandenburg  in  April,  and  that  of  Spain  in  May.  England 
followed  suit  in  the  same  month,  and  the  great  war  between 
the  Allied  Powers  and  France  was  declared,  which  did  not 
end  until  the  Peace  of  Ryswick,  1697. 

Meanwhile  another  event,  more  directly  bearing  on  the 
fortunes  of  the  House  of  Hanover,  took  place  in  England. 
The  Act  of  Settlement  was  passed  by  Parliament,  and 
though  this  Act  did  not  specify  the  Duchess  Sophia  and 
her  heirs  by  name,  it  expressly  excluded  any  Roman 
Catholic  prince  from  ascending  the  throne,  and  vested  the 
crown  in  the  Protestant  succession.  William  and  Mary 
were  childless,  Anne  was  in  feeble  health  (the  Duke  of 
Gloucester,  her  short-lived  son,  was  not  yet  born),  and  so 
it  seemed  in  the  course  of  nature  that,  if  the  Protestant 
succession  were  upheld,  the  crown  must  ultimately  devolve 
on  Sophia  or  her  children  as  the  Protestant  descendants 
of  the  Stuarts  in  the  line  of  succession.  William  also 
intimated  that,  when  occasion  served,  he  would  do  more 
in  the  matter. 

The  Duchess  Sophia  received  the  news  with  the  liveliest 
feelings  of  joy,  and  even  Ernest  Augustus  was  not  insensible 
to  the  importance  which  accrued  thereby  to  the  House  of 
Hanover.  Prince  George  Louis  remained  unmoved  ;  he 
had  not  forgotten  his  unsuccessful  mission  to  England  seven 


PLAYING  WITH  FIRE  101 

years  before.  Prince  Max,  always  in  opposition,  avowed 
himself  an  ardent  Jacobite  ;  the  other  young  princes  prob- 
ably did  not  trouble  about  the  matter  at  all.  In  default  of 
a  more  sympathetic  audience,  therefore,  the  Duchess  Sophia 
turned  again  to  her  daughter-in-law,  Sophie  Dorothea,  and 
expatiated  on  the  brilliant  possibilities  before  her.  Poor 
Sophie  Dorothea,  who  was  ill  and  unhappy,  proved  even 
more  indifferent  than  her  husband  ;  the  prospect  of  the 
English  crown  was  much  too  vague  to  allure  her,  and  Eng- 
land was  little  more  than  a  name.  The  Duchess  Sophia 
had  again  occasion  to  remonstrate  with  her  daughter-in-law 
on  her  lack  of  interest  in  a  matter  which  affected  not  herself 
only,  but  her  children. 

By  way  of  emphasising  the  importance  of  the  Act  of 
Settlement,  William  appointed  Sir  William  Dutton  Colt 
to  be  Envoy  Extraordinary  io  the  Princes  of  Brunswick- 
Wolfenbiittel  and  Brunswick-Liineburg.  Colt  was  charged 
with  the  mission  of  representing  England  at  the  courts  of 
Hanover,  Celle,  and  Brunswick,  and  of  keeping  their  re- 
spective princes  well  disposed  towards  the  great  Alliance. 
No  easy  task,  it  must  be  admitted  ;  for  all  the  princes 
pulled  different  ways,  and  the  perpetual  journeys  from 
Hanover  to  Celle,  and  Celle  to  Brunswick,  to  say  nothing 
of  following  the  Duke  of  Celle  in  his  ceaseless  movements 
to  Brockhausen,  Wienhausen,  and  Gohre,  would  have  worn 
out  any  but  a  strong  man.  As  it  was,  we  soon  find  Colt 
complaining  of  the  "  perpetual  motion  "  of  the  court  of  Celle. 

The  new  envoy  arrived  at  Celle  in  July,  1689.  He 
was  received  by  the  Duke  and  Duchess  "  with  all  ye  respect 
and  ceremony  imaginable,"  but  his  first  impressions  of 
Celle  were  indifferent.  "  The  town,"  he  writes,  "  is  very 
poor,  and  all  ye  country  round  nothing  but  a  deep  sand 
and  wood  of  small  fyr  trees,  full  of  all  sorts  of  wild  beasts, 
which  with  the  Duke's  passion  for  hunting  makes  him 
reside  constantly  here  and  at  some  little  houses  he  has  in 
ye  neighbourhood.  I  fear  to  pass  a  very  miserable  winter 
here,  in  extreme  cold  and  very  ill  houses."  l  But  Hanover 
cheered  his  spirits.  "This  place,"  he  writes,  "has  much 
more  the  appearance  of  a  court,  and  the  town  much  larger 
and  finer,  people  laying  out  their  money  in  building  and 

1  Colt's  Despatch,  Celle,  July  19,  1689. 


102    THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

furnishing  their  houses,  besides  abundance  of  strangers 
resorting  constantly  hither." l  And  again  :  "  Nothing  can 
be  happier  than  we  are  here,  all  the  court  and  the  ministers 
showing  us  all  imaginable  kindness".2  His  secretary,  De 
la  Roque,  was  even  more  enthusiastic.  "  Yesterday,"  he 
writes,  "  Sir  William  Colt  had  an  audience  with  the  Duke 
and  Duchess  and  Princess  of  Hanover  [Sophie  Dorothea], 
who  received  him  with  every  mark  of  respect  due  to  him 
as  His  Majesty's  envoy.  This  court  is  as  splendid  as  any 
in  Germany  ;  genius  and  civility  reign  here.  The  Duchess 
Sophia  is  une  personne  incomparable  (fun  esprit,  (fune  bonte, 
et  d'une  civilite  a  charmer.  She  speaks  all  living  languages 
as  well  as  her  own.  Her  beautiful  daughter  [in  law],  the 
Princess,  is  both  accomplished  and  agreeable."  3 

Soon  after  this  the  Duke  and  Duchess  of  Celle  paid  a 
visit  to  the  court  of  Hanover.  The  two  brothers  had  much 
to  talk  about  in  connection  with  the  part  they  were  to  play 
in  the  great  war  and  the  intrigues  for  the  electorate.  It  is 
more  than  probable  the  Duke  of  Celle  thought  at  this  time 
that,  as  he  was  the  elder  brother,  the  Emperor  would  con- 
fer the  Electoral  dignity  on  him,  and  he  was  so  foolish  that 
the  cunning  Ernest  Augustus,  with  the  aid  of  his  unscrupu- 
lous tools  Bernstorff  and  Platen,  could  hoodwink  him  as 
much  as  he  pleased.  He  seemed  to  be  rapidly  losing  any 
will  of  his  own,  and  he  became  more  and  more  the  pawn 
of  his  ambitious  and  scheming  brother.  Proportionately 
as  the  Hanoverian  influence  waxed,  that  of  the  Duchess 
Eleonore  waned,  and  she  had  now  no  voice  in  affairs  of 
state  and  comparatively  little  in  matters  of  a  purely 
domestic  nature.  The  Celle-Wolfenbiittel  combination 
had  long  ago  fallen  to  pieces,  and  George  William's  dislike 
of  Antony  Ulrich  was  not  far  short  of  Ernest  Augustus's 
hatred  of  the  same  prince.  Between  the  courts  of  Bruns- 
wick and  Hanover  there  existed  the  most  intense  jealousy. 
The  records  of  the  time  reveal  a  network  of  intrigue, 
bribery,  treachery,  and  falsehood  between  these  petty 
German  courts  which  has  seldom  been  equalled  and  never 
surpassed  ;  the  restricted  area  and  the  pettiness  of  the 
disputes  added  intensity  to  the  bitterness. 

1  Colt's  Despatch,  Hanover,  July  26,  1689. 

-Ibid.,  Hanover,  July  30,  1689. 

a  Letter  of  De  la  Roque,  July  26,  1689. 


PLAYING  WITH  FIRE  K>J 

The  Duchess  Eleonore  was  not  a  very  welcome  guest 
at  .Hanover ;  but  the  Duchess  Sophia  had  by  this  time 
sufficiently  masked  her  animosity  to  receive  her  with  civility, 
and,  indeed,  on  account  of  their  grandchildren,  little  George 
Augustus  and  Sophie  Dorothea,  common  sense  told  the 
older  people  that  it  would  be  well  to  dissemble  their  dis- 
likes, and  there  was  nothing  to  be  gained  by  perpetual  strife. 
It  had  no  such  lesson  for  the  Prince  and  Princess  of  Han- 
over, whose  dislike  for  each  other  seemed  to  increase  as 
time  went  on  ;  and  though  Duchess  Eleonore  had  abundant 
love  and  sympathy  for  her  unhappy  daughter,  we  find  her 
henceforth  preaching  prudence  and  patience  to  her,  and 
urging  her,  for  her  children's  sake,  to  make  the  best  of  her  lot. 

There  were  many  festivities  at  Hanover  in  honour  of 
the  visit  of  the  Duke  and    Duchess  of  Celle,  and  among 
them  the  Prince  and   Princess  of  Hanover  gave  a  ball  to 
which  the  court  and  nobility  were  invited.     Everything  was 
done  on  a  scale  of  magnificence.     Duke  Ernest  Augustus 
and  the  Duchess  Sophia  with  a  numerous  suite  attended  in 
state,  and  sat  on  a  raised  dais  with  their  honoured  guests. 
The  Duchess  Eleonore  must  have  felt  that  at  last  she  was 
a  duchess  indeed,  especially  if  she  contrasted  these  flatter- 
ing attentions  from  her  haughty  kinsfolk  with  their  former 
snubbings  and  insults.     The  evening  began  with  a  play — 
probably  a  pastoral  with  dances  ;  then  there  was  a  procession 
to  the  banqueting-hall,  and  after  supper  Sophie  Dorothea 
opened  the  ball  with  her  father  the  Duke  of  Celle.     The 
Duchess  Sophia  and  the  Duchess  Eleonore  did  not  dance, 
but  sat  apart  on  the  dais.     Duke  Ernest  Augustus  was  too 
stout,  so  George   Louis   led  out  the  Countess   Platen,  as 
vis-a-vis,  she   being  the   greatest   lady  present   after   their 
Serene  Highnesses,  and  it  is  recorded  that  the  splendour 
of  her  jewels  and  attire  far  outshone  those  of  the  ducal 
party.     When   the  first  set  dance  was  over,  the  dancing 
became  more  general,  and  Konigsmarck  and  the  Princess 
stood  up  for  a  minuet.     Konigsmarck  wore  a  suit  of  pink 
and   silver,  while  the  Princess  appeared   as   Flora,   all   in 
white,  with  no  jewels  and  a  wreath  of  natural  flowers.    They 
made  so  handsome  a  couple,  and   withal   danced   so  ex- 
quisitely, that  they  called  forth  the  admiration  of  the  whole 
company.     Indeed,  the  Countess  Platen  was  so  struck  by 
the  grace  of  Konigsmarck's  dancing  and  the  beauty  of  his 


104   THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

person  that  when  the  dance  was  over,  she  went  up  and 
complimented  him  in  most  extravagant  terms  before  the 
whole  assembly,  to  which  Konigsmarck,  who  was  nothing 
if  not  gallant,  replied  in  a  fitting  manner.  The  incident 
did  not  fail  to  attract  the  notice  of  the  court,  except  that 
of  Ernest  Augustus,  who  seemed  blind  and  deaf  where  his 
favourite  was  concerned. 

From  this  hour  Konigsmarck's  intimacy  with  the 
Countess  Platen  ripened  rapidly — an  intimacy  which  may 
be  palliated,  but  certainly  cannot  be  excused.  He  became 
a  frequent  visitor  to  Monplaisir,  where  drinking  was  deep 
and  play  was  high.  The  Countess  was  always  willing  to 
win  a  little  money  from  her  admirers  (it  was  the  recognised 
way  of  buying  her  favours),  and  before  long  rumour  spread 
the  tale  that  an  intrigue  existed  between  the  two.  It  is 
difficult  to  say  what  was  the  truth  of  the  matter.  The 
Countess  Platen  must  at  this  time  have  been  about  forty 
years  of  age,  but  she  was  at  the  height  of  her  opulent 
charms  ; l  she  had  power,  wealth,  and  the  art  of  making 
herself  pleasant  and  fascinating  to  men,  and  she  was  not 
troubled  with  any  scruples.  Konigsmarck  was  neither 
better  nor  worse  than  other  young  nobles  of  his  day,  and 
the  probability  is  that  Poellnitz's  narrative  is  in  the  main 
true,  and  in  an  unguarded  moment  Konigsmarck  threw 
over  his  good  intentions  and  discretion.'- 

1  Thackeray  calls  her  a  "  hideous  old  court  lady  "  ;  on  what  authority  I 
know  not.  She  certainly  was  not  old  at  that  time,  and  far  from  hideous. 
There  is  a  picture  of  her  at  Herrenhausen  in  a  rich  crimson  robe,  a  fine 
voluptuous-looking  woman,  with  black  hair  and  an  ample  bust,  just  the  sort 
of  woman  one  would  expect  her  to  be.  Curiously  enough  the  picture  hangs 
immediately  beneath  that  of  Konigsmarck. 

Thackeray  also  says  of  Konigsmarck  that  "a  greater  scamp  does  not 
walk  the  history  of  the  seventeenth  century  "  ;  but  there  is  nothing  to  show 
that  Konigsmarck  was  any  greater  scamp  than  his  contemporaries ;  in  many 
things — notably  in  his  bravery,  his  generosity,  and,  later,  his  fidelity  to  a 
great  love  passion — he  was  better  than  most  of  them. 

2Poellnitz  asserts  that  on  receiving  the  Countess  Platen's  compliments 
on  his  dancing  at  the  ball,  "  Konigsmarck  comprit  tout  le  sens  de  ces  paroles, 
et  la  passion  qu'il  avoit  pour  la  Princesse  ne  le  rendit  pas  insensible  aux 
avances  d'une  aussi  belle  personne  que  la  Comtesse.  II  lui  re"pondit  qu'il 
6toit  confus  des  bontez  qu'elle  vouloit  bien  avoir  pour  lui  qui  le  meritoit  si 
peu,  et  que  puisqu'elle  lui  permettoit  de  Taller  trouver  le  soir.  .  .  .  Konigs- 
marck fut  chez  la  Comtesse,  qu'il  trouva  en  deshabille  sur  un  lit  de  repos. 
Elle  se  leva  et  ayant  laisse'  toute  modestie,  elle  courut  1'embrasser,  en  lui 
avoiiant  sa  foiblesse  et  lui  faisant  voir  tant  de  charmes,  que  Konigsmarck  ne 
se  fit  point  scrupule  de  repondre  a  sa  tendresse.  Le  jour  6toit  pret  a  paroitre 
quand  il  se  retira  chez  lui.  II  se  jetta  sur  son  lit  pour  y  prendre  quelque 


PLAYING  WITH  FIRE  105 

Konigsmarck  was  soon  smitten  with  remorse.  He  could 
not  ignore  the  fact  that  his  intimacy  with  the  bitterest  enemy 
•of  the  Princess  must  look  very  much  like  treachery  in  Sophie 
Dorothea's  eyes,  and  he  sought  an  audience  to  make  excuses 
to  her  for  his  conduct,  declaring,  not  very  ingenuously,  that 
it  was  necessary  to  win  the  favour  of  the  Countess  if  he  were 
to  be  of  any  real  service  to  the  Princess.  The  Princess 
answered  coldly  that  it  was  a  matter  of  indifference  to 
her  how  he  spent  his  time,  or  with  whom,  and  he  was  wise 
to  pay  his  court  to  the  mistress,  as  she  could  prove  a 
much  more  powerful  and  influential  friend  than  she  (the 
Princess)  could  ever  be.  Indeed,  she  went  on  bitterly,  she 
had  no  friends  ;  she  was  betrayed  and  deserted  on  every 
side.  Only  recently  she  had  craved  leave  to  return  with 
her  father  and  mother  to  Celle  for  a  time,  but,  through  the 
interference  of  Countess  Platen,  Ernest  Augustus  had  re- 
fused permission,  and  she  must  needs  remain  in  Hanover 
surrounded  by  enemies.  She  burst  into  tears,  and  Konigs- 
marck, smitten  by  self-reproach,  became  scarcely  less  agi- 
tated, and  vowed  with  great  fervour  his  respectful  homage 
and  lifelong  fidelity  to  her  interests.  Just  at  this  point 
Prince  Charles  came  in  to  pay  his  respects  to  Sophie 
Dorothea,  and,  finding  both  his  sister-in-law  and  Konigs- 
marck violently  agitated  with  an  emotion  they  were  unable 
to  conceal,  his  suspicions  were  aroused.  He  was  a  well- 
wisher  of  both,  and,  though  he  said  nothing  to  the  Princess, 
when  the  visit  was  over  he  took  Konigsmarck  aside,  and 
warned  him  that  the  path  he  was  treading  was  a  dangerous 
•one,  and  it  behoved  him  to  walk  more  warily. 

Konigsmarck  thought  so  too.  His  passion  for  the 
Princess  was  growing  daily,  and  threatened  to  outstep  all 
bounds  of  discretion.  He  was  not  wholly  selfish  ;  he  loved 
her  with  all  the  love  he  was  capable  of  feeling,  and  he 
began  to  see  that  his  presence,  so  far  from  serving  her 
<:ause,  was  likely  only  to  increase  her  difficulties.  His 
brief-lived  intrigue  with  Countess  Platen  filled  him  with 
disgust  and  remorse  ;  he  was  at  his  wits'  end  to  repel  her 
advances  with  civility,  and  there  were  the  elements  of 
danger  in  it  too,  for  should  Ernest  Augustus  suspect  any- 

repos,  mais  ce  fut  en  vain,  et  il  se  reprochoit  continuellement  d'avoir  etc 
sensible  aux  charmes  de  1'ennemie  declaree  de  la  Princesse "  (Histoire 
•Secrette  de  la  Duchessc  d'Hanover,  pp.  80-81). 


io6   THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

thing,  his  career  at  Hanover  would  be  closed  for  all  time. 
The  only  way  out  of  the  dilemma  was  a  temporary  absence. 

The  opportunity  soon  came.  In  accordance  with  his 
treaty  with  the  Emperor  Leopold,  Ernest  Augustus,  wha 
this  summer  had  sent  troops  to  Flanders,  and  his  eldest 
son,  George  Louis,  to  the  Rhine,  was  also  sending,  in  the 
autumn  of  1689,  some  regiments  of  his  famous  Hanoverians 
to  the  Morea,  to  fight  with  the  Imperial  forces  against  the 
Turks,  and  Prince  Charles,  Konigsmarck's  bosom  friend,, 
was  to  accompany  them.  What  more  natural  than  that 
Konigsmarck  should  volunteer  to  go  too,  especially  when 
the  Duchess  Sophia  made  an  appeal  to  his  friendship  and 
entreated  him  not  to  suffer  her  best-loved  son  to  face  the 
perils  and  dangers  of  this  far-away  campaign  alone?  He 
at  once  craved  permission  to  serve  with  the  Hanoverian 
troops  in  the  campaign,  and  it  was  granted.  Dearly  as 
he  loved  military  adventure,  he  did  not  go  without  sadness 
and  misgiving.  It  was  hard  for  him  to  tear  himself  away 
from  the  object  of  his  passion  ;  and,  as  the  day  of  departure 
drew  near,  his  depression  was  noticeable  to  the  whole  court, 
and  the  more  inexplicable  because  he  had  come  to  Hanover 
with  the  reputation  of  being  a  brave  and  keen  soldier.  The 
Countess  Platen  remonstrated  with  him  on  his  decision  ; 
she  had  no  wish  to  lose  so  amiable  a  gallant.  He  told  her 
coldly  but  civilly  that  his  determination  was  unalterable, 
and  doubtless  in  his  absence  she  would  forget  him.  With 
the  Princess  his  leave-taking  was  more  difficult.  Unaware 
of  the  depth  of  the  feelings  he  entertained  for  her,  and 
seeing  in  him  nothing  but  a  sincere  and  devoted  friend, 
Sophie  Dorothea  did  not  hesitate  to  express  her  regret  that 
he  was  leaving  her  at  a  time  of  great  stress  and  difficulty,, 
when  she  had  most  need  of  his  counsel  and  advice.  She 
besought  him  to  take  care  of  himself  and  return  quickly, 
for  she  saw  before  her  a  time  of  sore  tribulation  when  she 
would  need  to  the  utmost  all  her  friends.  Konigsmarck 
was  so  moved  by  these  gracious  words  that  he  had  great 
difficulty  in  restraining  his  emotion  ;  as  it  was,  he  contented 
himself  with  vowing  again  his  devotion  and  fidelity  to  her 
interests,  and  bade  her  adieu. 

The  rigours  of  an  early  winter  had  set  in,  the  snow  was 
lying  on  the  plains  around  Hanover,  when  Konigsmarck 
and  Prince  Charles  set  forth  for  the  Morea. 


CHAPTER  X. 

THE  EMBROIDERED  GLOVE. 
(1690-1691.) 

They  two  alone  one  summer  day  : 

"Ah  Love,"  she  said,  "is  hard  to  lose". 

"  And  harder  still,"  he  said,  "  to  say 
The  bitter  words  that  you  must  choose 

Between  the  lover  of  to-day 

And  the  true  friend  of  yesterday." 

LADY  ARABELLA  ROMILLY. 

THE  winter  was  one  of  the  most  rigorous  known  for  years,, 
and  brought  much  hardship  and  suffering  to  the  troops 
fighting  in  the  Morea  and  privation  and  want  to  the  people 
at  home.  The  Hanoverian  subjects  groaned  under  the 
weight  of  the  large  and  increasing  military  burden  imposed 
on  them.  Taxes  were  high  and  discontent  was  general.1 
But,  though  soldiers  might  die  and  peasants  perish  of  cold 
and  starvation,  the  court  of  Hanover  was  as  gay  and  ex- 
travagant as  ever.  Countess  Platen  kept  open  house  at  her 
palace  of  Monplaisir  ;  her  jewels  and  dresses  grew  more 
and  more  resplendent ;  her  hazard  table  was  the  focus  of  all 
the  dissolute  young  nobles  about  the  court.  The  opera  was 
thronged  nightly.  Thousands  of  thalers  were  squandered 
on  feasting  and  music  and  dancing,  though  the  duchy  was 
involved  in  a  bloody  and  unprofitable  war,  and  its  troops 
were  being  mowed  down  like  grass  by  the  scimitars  of  the 
Moslem  hordes. 

The  New  Year  opened  with  much  festivity.  "This 
family  is  here  together,"  writes  Colt,  "  except  the  Duke  of 
Celle  and  his  court.  We  have  had  a  carnaval  and  a  most 
magnificent  Opera  of  voyces  from  Venice,  which  has  drawn 
much  company  hither."  ''  And  again  :  "  Our  opera  is  most 

1 "  Every  prince  here  keeps  more  troops  than  he  can  possibly  maintain  " 
(Colt's  Despatch,  Hanover  Correspondence,  December  4,  1689). 
2  Colt's  Despatch,  Hanover,  January  24,  1690. 

107 


io8    THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

magnificent  fine,  exceeding  even  that  of  Italy".1  But  there 
was  a  spectre  at  the  revels  which  would  not  be  shut  out. 
•"  I  am  under  dreadful  apprehensions,"  he  continues,  "  that 
our  mirth  will  not  end  well,  being  concerned  for  the  safety 
of  Prince  Charles,  the  fourth  son  of  this  Duke,  who  is 
marching  from  Prestina.  If  he  be  killed  it  will  bring  both 
the  Duke  and  the  Duchess  with  sorrow  to  their  graves  ; 
nor,  indeed,  have  I  ever  seen  one  more  generally  beloved." 
Poor  Sophie  Dorothea  was  probably  under  "dreadful  ap- 
prehensions" too,  not  only  for  the  safety  of  her  favourite 
brother-in-law,  who  had  always  taken  her  part,  but  for  the 
man  whom  she  deemed  her  faithful  friend  and  devoted 
adherent;  if  she  lost  them  she  would  be  friendless  indeed. 
But  however  much  her  heart  might  ache,  it  behoved  her  to 
smile  and  to  deck  herself  in  jewels  and  brave  attire,  and 
take  her  place  in  the  festivities  by  the  Duchess  Sophia's 
side,  who  had  sorrow  and  anxiety  too. 

A  few  weeks  later  and  the  evil  forebodings  were  realised. 
News  came  that  the  young  Prince,  the  flower  of  his  race,  the 
•darling  of  his  mother's  heart,  the  idol  of  the  court,  was  lost 
in  the  Morea.  There  were  many  contradictory  reports : 
some  said  he  was  slain,  others  that  he  was  only  wounded, 
others  that  he  was  taken  prisoner  and  carried  to  Constanti- 
nople. Then  followed  a  month  of  wearing  anxiety  ;  the 
Duchess  Sophia  broke  down  under  it  utterly,  and  the 
Electress  of  Brandenburg  came  to  comfort  her  mother.  It 
was  supposed,  too,  that  Konigsmarck  was  killed  or  taken 
prisoner.  At  last  the  suspense  ended.  "  We  have  received 
certain  news,"  writes  Colt,  "  that  Prince  Charles  was  killed 
on  the  spot  where  his  body  was  found,  with  several  of  his 
officers  and  servants  round  him,  dead.  He  had  several  cutts 
with  a  gymeker,  and  was  run  thro'  the  body  with  a  lance. 
Their  last  hope  of  his  being  a  prisoner  has  very  much  in- 
creased their  sorrow  here,  and  we  are  going  into  mourning."  * 
Konigsmarck  was  not  numbered  among  the  dead  ;  the 
Konigsmarck  luck  was  on  his  side,  and  by  some  miracle 
he  escaped,  though  the  Hanoverian  troops  were  decimated. 

The  Duchess  Sophia  fell  dangerously  ill  on  receiving  the 
news  of  her  favourite  son's  death,  and  the  court  despaired 
of  her  life.  The  sad  affliction  in  which  the  ducal  family 

'{Colt's  Despatch,  January  28,  1690. 
2  Ibid.,  Hanover,  February  25,  1690. 


THE  EMBROIDERED  GLOVE  109 

were  plunged  broke  down  for  a  time  all  minor  jealousies. 
The  Duke  of  Celle  came  personally  to  Hanover  to  offer  his 
condolences,  and  the  common  sorrow  seemed  to  draw  all 
members  of  the  family  closer  together.  A  month  later  the 
Duchess  Sophia  rallied  sufficiently  to  go  with  the  Duke  to 
Carlsbad  to  take  the  waters.  In  April  Konigsmarck  came 
back  to  Hanover  from  the  Morea,  in  company  with  the 
miserable  remnant  of  the  gallant  troops  who  had  set  forth 
so  bravely  the  autumn  before.  Some  idea  of  the  slaughter 
may  be  gained  from  the  fact  that  of  the  Duke  of  Brunswick- 
Wolfenbuttel's  contingent,  which  started  eleven  thousand 
strong,  only  one  hundred  and  thirty  returned. 

The  summer  of  1690  was  a  sad  one  at  Hanover.  The 
death  of  Prince  Charles  and  the  illness  of  the  Duchess 
Sophia  cast  a  gloom  over  a  court  which  as  a  rule  suffered 
not  death,  nor  sickness,  nor  misery  to  interrupt  its  dissipa- 
tions and  revelries.  Prince  George  Louis  went  to  Flanders 
to  command  his  father's  troops,  and  took  Prince  Ernest, 
the  youngest  of  the  princes,  with  him.1  It  was  not  a 
dangerous  expedition,  for  the  troops  of  the  Allies  were  for 
the  most  part  mobilising  this  year.  William  of  Orange 
was  not  in  Flanders  ;  he  had  his  hands  full  in  Ireland,, 
where,  at  the  head  of  a  motley  army  (English,  Dutch, 
Danish,  and  German — doubtless  the  first  fruits  of  the  great 
confederation),  he  was  grappling  with  King  James  at  the 
battle  of  the  Boyne. 

Konigsmarck  did  not  go  to  Flanders ;  he  had  had 
enough  of  fighting  for  the  present,  and  he  stayed  on  at 
Hanover,  where  Sophie  Dorothea,  abandoned,  as  usual, 
by  her  husband,  who  much  preferred  the  camp  to  the 
court  and  his  military  to  his  connubial  duties,  remained 
almost  alone.  Regarding  Konigsmarck  as  her  staunch 
adherent  and  trusted  friend,  she  rejoiced  greatly  on  his 
safe  return  from  the  jaws  of  death,  and  gave  him  ready 
and  frequent  audience.  In  the  lifetime  of  Prince  Charles 
these  interviews  had  excited  no  remark,  for  he  went  often 
to  see  his  sister-in-law  and  took  Konigsmarck  in  attendance. 
But.  things  were  now  different :  the  beloved  Prince  Charles, 
the  true  friend  of  both,  was  dead,  and  there  was  an  enemy 
once  more  at  work  plotting  the  Princess's  destruction. 

1  Colt's  Despatch   Celle,  May  27,  1690. 


no   THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

This  was  the  Countess  Platen,  who,  to  her  long-standing 
dislike  of  the  Princess,  now  added  an  element  of  personal 
jealousy.  She  too  had  greeted  Konigsmarck's  return  with 
joy  ;  but  he  had  courteously  but  firmly  repelled  her  advances, 
determined  not  to  be  caught  tripping  a  second  time.  The 
Countess  fancied  she  saw  the  cause  of  his  coldness  in  his 
devotion  to  Sophie  Dorothea,  and  from  that  moment  she 
determined  on  her  ruin.  Opportunity  to  injure  her  soon 
came. 

The  etiquette  of  the  court  was  very  strict,  and  the 
Princess,  as  we  have  remarked,  was  not  always  so  careful 
to  observe  it  in  public  as  she  might  have  been.  As 
colonel  of  the  guards,  Konigsmarck  had  free  access  to 
the  palace.  One  day,  when  he  was  there  on  duty,  he  met 
the  Princess  coming  in  from  the  gardens  with  her  little 
daughter.  In  the  ordinary  course  he  should  have  saluted 
and  passed  on.  But  the  little  girl  was  tired,  and  shirked 
the  long  flight  of  steps  leading  to  the  apartments  of  the 
Princess.  Instead  of  handing  her  over  to  an  attendant, 
Sophie  Dorothea  impulsively  caught  her  up  in  her  arms, 
and  began  to  mount  the  steps  with  her  burden.  This 
alone  was  supposed  to  show  a  deplorable  lack  of  dignity, 
and,  to  make  matters  worse,  Konigsmarck  laughingly 
remonstrated  with  Her  Highness,  and  insisted  on  taking 
the  young  Princess  from  her  arms  and  carrying  her  up 
the  stairs  to  the  door  of  her  apartments.  Just  at  this 
moment  who  should  pass  by  but  the  Countess  Platen,  who, 
seeing  them  laughing  and  talking  together,  cast  a  wither- 
ing glance,  and,  with  an  ironically  deep  obeisance  to  the 
Princess,  hurried  off  to  report  to  the  Duke  this  monstrous 
breach  of  etiquette. 

Duke  Ernest  Augustus  was  now  home  from  Carlsbad, 
much  the  better  of  his  gout,  and  in  good  temper  with  things 
generally.  He  was  indulgent  to  Sophie  Dorothea  and  her 
whims,  except  when  they  crossed  his  wishes.  In  this  case 
he  could  not  see  anything  very  wrong  in  her  conduct,  though 
the  circumstance  was  grossly  exaggerated  by  the  Countess, 
and  he  turned  a  deaf  ear  to  her  hints  and  innuendoes,  re- 
fusing to  believe  any  evil.  Perhaps  he  had  a  shrewd  idea 
that  jealousy  was  at  the  bottom  of  it.  But  afterwards  he 
remonstrated  with  the  Princess,  and  reprimanded  Konigs- 
marck for  having  been  guilty  of  an  impertinence,  though, 


THE  EMBROIDERED  GLOVE  in 

Hanoverian  etiquette  apart,  he  seems  to  have  only  performed 
an  act  of  natural  courtesy.  The  incident  was  reported  about 
the  court,  and  from  the  tittle-tattle  came  the  first  breath  of 
scandal  which  afterwards  tarnished  so  sadly  the  mirror  of 
Sophie  Dorothea's  fair  name.1 

Soon  after  this  the  Hanoverian  court,  except  the  Duchess 
Sophia,  went  on  a  visit  to  Brunswick,  according  to  their 
annual  custom,  to  divert  themselves  with  an  opera  and  the 
fair.2  The  Duke  and  Duchess  of  Celle  were  there  also,  and 
Duke  Antony  Ulrich  with  his  family  and  a  numerous  court. 
Antony  Ulrich  had  now  become  co-regent  with  his  elder 
brother,  Duke  Rudolph  Augustus,  who,  being  a  scholar 
and  recluse,  practically  left  all  government  in  his  hands. 
It  was  Antony  Ulrich  who  dictated  the  policy  of  the  House 
of  Brunswick-Wolfenbiittel,  and  he  kept  his  court  sometimes 
at  Wblfenbiittel  and  sometimes  at  Brunswick.  Brunswick 
was  then  a  Hanseatic  town  of  considerable  importance, 
strongly  fortified,  and  much  frequented  by  merchants.  The 
annual  fair  was  a  great  event  which  the  pleasure-loving 
court  of  Hanover  would  not  forego.  Not  the  recent  death 
of  the  Prince,  nor  the  reverses  of  the  army  in  the  Morea, 
nor  the  ill-concealed  enmity  between  the  Duke  of  Hanover 
and  Duke  Antony  Ulrich  sufficed  to  keep  Ernest  Augustus 
from  the  Brunswick  revels.  Just  now  in  the  interests  of  the 
great  alliance  the  feud  between  them  was  slumbering. 
Sophie  Dorothea  was  there  too,  and  so  doubtless  was 
Konigsmarck.  The  death  of  the  Elector  Palatine  put  a 
sudden  end  to  the  ill-timed  festivities. 

At  the  end  of  October  Prince  George  Louis  returned 
from  Flanders  with  his  troops,  for  winter  quarters.3  Absence 
had  not  improved  his  domestic  relations  ;  he  spent  all  his 
time  with  Ermengarda  Melusina  Schulenburg,  and  his  un- 
happy wife  saw  little  or  nothing  of  him  ;  at  this  time  she 
was  his  wife  in  name  only. 

1  The  authority  for  this  incident,  and  the  episode  of  the   embroidered 
glove  which  follows,  may  be  traced  either  to  the  Roman  Octavia,  by  Duke 
Antony  Ulrich,  or  to  the  writings  of  Major  Miiller,  who  was  for  some  time 
librarian  to  the  late  Duke  of  Cambridge,  when  Regent  of  Hanover,  and  who 
had  free  access  to  the  Hanoverian  archives.     Count  Schulenburg  considered 
.his  writings  worthy  of  credit,  but  I  cannot  vouch  for  their  accuracy,  though 
the  inherent  probability  of  these  incidents  justifies  their  insertion  here. 

2  Colt's  Hanover  Correspondence,  August  12,  1690. 
'AIbid.,  October  24,  1690. 


ii2    THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

In  January,  1691,  the  Duke  of  Wolfenbiittel  and  the 
Duke  of  Hanover,  each  with  a  numerous  retinue,  went  to 
the  Hague  to  meet  William  and  take  part  in  the  delibera- 
tions of  the  great  congress  of  the  Allies.  The  Duke  of 
Celle  was  to  have  gone  too,  but  an  attack  of  gout  at  the 
last  moment  prevented  him,  much  to  his  chagrin,  as  he  was 
a  staunch  friend  of  England.  The  quiet  Dutch  town  pre- 
sented a  spectacle  of  extraordinary  gaiety.  William  had 
just  made  his  triumphal  return  to  his  own  country  for  the 
first  time  since  he  had  become  King  of  England,  and  his 
Dutchmen  welcomed  him  with  acclamations  and  delight, 
which  showed  how  deeply  the  Dutch  phlegm  could  be 
stirred  on  occasion.  The  streets  were  decorated  by  day 
and  illuminated  by  night ;  every  house  was  crowded,  and 
the  retinues  of  the  princely  throng  were  sore  put  about 
to  find  a  lodging  for  their  masters,  much  more  for  them- 
selves. It  was  an  imposing  gathering  ;  never  before  had 
Europe  witnessed  such  a  congress.  The  haughty  Elector 
of  Brandenburg  was  there,  the  young  Catholic  Elector  of 
Bavaria,  the  Regent  of  Wurtemburg,  the  Landgraves  of 
Hesse-Cassel  and  Hesse-Darmstadt,  and  princes  of  the 
Sovereign  Houses  of  Saxony,  Holstein,  Nassau,  and,  as 
before  mentioned,  of  Brunswick- Wolfenbiittel  and  Bruns- 
wick-Liineburg  ;  plenipotentiaries  extraordinary  were  there 
from  the  Emperor  Leopold,  the  kings  of  Spain,  Poland,, 
Denmark,  Sweden,  and  the  Duke  of  Savoy.  The  Hague 
was  transformed.  As  Macaulay  says  : — 

"  The  grave  capital  of  the  most  thrifty  and  industrious 
of  nations  was  as  gay  as  Venice  in  the  carnival.  The 
walks,  cut  among  those  noble  limes  and  elms  in  which 
the  villa  of  the  Prince  of  Orange  is  embosomed,  were  gay 
with  the  plumes,  the  stars,  the  flowing  wigs,  the  embroid- 
ered coats,  and  the  gold-hilted  swords  of  gallants  from 
London,  Berlin,  and  Vienna.  With  the  nobles  were  min- 
gled sharpers  not  less  gorgeously  attired  than  they.  At 
night  the  hazard  tables  were  thronged  ;  and  the  theatre  was 
filled  to  the  roof.  Princely  banquets  followed  one  another 
in  rapid  succession.  The  meats  were  served  in  gold."1 

It   was  magnificent,  but    it    was  not    war.     The  great 

1  Macaulay's  History  of  England,  vol.  iv.,  p.  7.  Macaulay's  authority 
was  Relation  dc  la  Voyage  de  son  Majcstc  Britannique  en  Hollande  (Brunet, 
ii.,  72). 


THE  EMBROIDERED  GLOVE  113 

congress  resolved  to  oppose  Louis  with  two  hundred  and 
twenty  thousand  men,  but  while  they  were  talking,  feasting, 
and  junketing,  the  Grand  Monarque  was  up  and  doing. 
Mons,  the  most  important  of  the  fortresses  of  the  Spanish 
Netherlands,  was  besieged  and  fell.  The  glamour  of  the 
congress  was  at  once  destroyed  and  the  Allies  were  dis- 
quieted. Louis  returned  in  triumph  to  Versailles,  and 
William  went  back  in  chagrin  to  England  for  a  brief  visit. 
The  other  princes  and  potentates  broke  up  in  dudgeon  and 
went  their  several  ways,  among  them  the  Brunswick  dukes, 
who  returned  to  Hanover  and  Wolfenbiittel  respectively. 

On  the  return  of  the  Brunswick  princes,  intrigues  and 
discontents  ran  high  at  the  courts  of  Hanover  and  Celle. 
The  fall  of  Mons  and  the  continued  uncertainty  about  the 
coveted  electorate  made  the  Duke  of  Hanover  turn  his  back 
upon  William  of  Orange  and  lend  a  willing  ear  once  more 
to  the  overtures  of  the  French  King.  An  envoy  of  Louis 
was  at  Hanover,  and  was  received  with  great  favour  by 
Ernest  Augustus  and  by  Count  and  Countess  Platen,  to- 
whom  he  made  large  presents.  The  Duke  himself  does 
not  seem  to  have  been  above  the  suspicion  of  bribery,  for,, 
writes  Colt,  "  to  show  some  of  us  he  doth  not  want  money, 
he  bought  a  jewel  of  forty  thousand  crowns  from  a  Jew  of 
Amsterdam,  or  else  it  was  a  present,  for  by  that  channel 
the  French  money  comes  "-1 

The  English  envoy  was  hard  put  to  it  to  counteract 
these  influences.  The  Duchess  Sophia  was  on  his  side,  but 
she  could  do  little.  Prince  George  Louis  was  with  him  too, 
but  he  could  do  less.  On  the  other  hand,  the  Princess 
Sophie  Dorothea  favoured  the  French  party.  "  The  eldest 
prince,"  writes  Colt,  "  is  a  very  reserved  man  and  has  good 
parts,  and  not  in  the  least  French  in  his  inclinations,  which 
gave  that  party  some  discontent ;  they  make  all  ye  court 
imaginable  to  ye  Princess,  and  I  fear  not  without  success,  for 
she  has  no  great  fondness  for  the  Prince."1  The  Princess 
was  probably  influenced  by  her  mother,  who  was  French  at 
heart,  as  well  as  by  birth,  and,  with  the  Duke  of  Hanover, 
they  united  in  dissuading  the  Duke  of  Celle  from  sending 
troops  to  Flanders.  Colt  had  spoken  of  the  Duchess  of 
Celle  as  likely  to  support  France. 

bolt's  Despatches,  Locknam,  June  10,  1691.  *Ibid.,  Hanover. 

8 


ii4   THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

"  She  be  a  French  woman,  and  consequently  loves  ye 
imaginary  glory  and  greatness  of  France  ;  yet  I  am  per- 
suaded she  wishes  us  [the  English]  better  than  those  I  have 
mentioned  [BernstorfT,  the  Platens,  etc.],  whom  she  hates, 
because  they  have  lessened  her  credit  with  the  Duke,  with 
whom  she  can  now  do  but  little."  But  now  he  had  no 
doubt.  "  The  Duchess  of  Celle  be  on  ye  French  side  very 
much  now.  For  my  part  I  doubt  she  is  changed  in  the 
principalls  of  her  religion  too,  for  she  maintains  that  the 
Protestants  might  have  stayed  in  France,  and  have  com- 
plyed  by  going  to  Mass  as  a  less  crime  than  quitting  their 
King  and  country.  It  makes  me  often  wonder  at  the 
Duke's  patience,  and  how  he  suffers  it.  ...  The  Duchess 
here  [Celle]  hath  engaged  the  Princess  to  assist  her  in 
persuading  the  Duke." 1  And  again  :  "  The  Princess  of 
Hanover  and  her  son  have  been  here  till  this  day  to  take 
their  leave  of  the  Duke,  and  to  remind  him  how  much  the 
Duchess  is  to  be  his  care  as  well  as  theirs,  so  that  the  Duke 
of  Hanover  acts  on  sure  grounds  both  ways.  The  Duke 
shows  great  fondness  of  his  daughter  and  grandson." 2 

But  George  William's  sympathies  were  stoutly  English. 
He  had  great  admiration  for  William  of  Orange,  who  had 
sent  him  a  present  of  horses,  and  nothing  would  induce  him 
to  intrigue  with  France.  But  he  was  won  over  to  adopting 
a  neutral  attitude  for  a  time,  with  the  result  that  no  troops 
from  the  princes  of  Brunswick-Liineburg  were  sent  to 
Flanders  for  the  campaign  of  1691. 

These  cross-currents  and  intrigues  were  very  trying  to 
the  English  envoy,  and  he  writes  home  pages  and  pages 
telling  of  his  efforts  to  stem  the  tide.  Among  other  things, 
he  gave  a  great  party  and  entertained  at  supper  all  the 
distinguished  visitors  who  were  at  Hanover,  including  the 
Electress  of  Brandenburg,  the  Duchess  of  Celle,  the  Duchess 
of  Hanover,  the  Duke  of  Saxe-Gotha,  the  Princess  of  East 
Friesland  and  her  party,  and  all  the  young  princes.3  The 
French  emissary  immediately  gave  another  yet  more 
splendid,  and  as  he  reinforced  it  with  costly  presents  all 
round,  his  influence  was  paramount. 

The  Princess  Sophie  Dorothea  attended  both  parties ; 
her  sympathy  with  France  is  practically  the  only  authen- 

1  Colt's  Despatch,  Celle,  May  8,  1691. 

.,  Celle,  May  22,  1691.  3 Ibid.,  Hanover. 


THE  EMBROIDERED  GLOVE  115 

ticated  instance  of  her  interference  in  politics,  if  we  except 
her  suspected  intrigues  with  Wolfenbiittel. 

Konigsmarck  went  to  the  Hague  in  the  suite  of  the 
Duke  of  Hanover,  and  among  the  gallants  who  swaggered 
and  gambled  and  played  in  the  taverns  and  streets  of  the 
old  Dutch  town  none  cut  a  braver  figure  than  he.  His 
intimacy  with  Sophie  Dorothea  seemed  to  grow  no  nearer ; 
he  could  be  of  no  service  to  her,  and,  though  most  friendly, 
she  kept  him  at  an  arm's  length.  He  was  her  most 
obedient  servant,  most  faithful  friend,  but  nothing  more, 
and  he  desired  to  be  much  more.  Baffled  and  depressed 
at  this  time,  he  wanted  to  leave  the  Hanoverian  service  and 
join  the  army  of  William  ;  he  had  known  England  and 
loved  it,  and  while  at  the  Hague  had  been  presented  to  the 
King,  who  had  been  pleased  to  receive  him  very  graciously, 
and  would  have  taken  him  into  his  service,  for  he  had  need 
of  dare-devil  soldiers  of  the  Konigsmarck  type.  But  the 
Duke  of  Hanover  would  not  let  him  go.  He  liked  his 
dashing  colonel  of  the  guards,  and  was  unwilling  that  his 
court  should  lose  so  brilliant  an  ornament ;  he,  however, 
gave  him  leave  to  go  to  Brabant  to  see  the  English  army, 
and  thither  Konigsmarck  went  in  May,  but  a  month  later ' 
he  was  back  in  Hanover. 

Konigsmarck  celebrated  his  return  by  giving  an  en- 
tertainment, a  masquerade,  which  was  honoured  by  the 
attendance  of  many  of  the  members  of  the  ducal  family. 
The  Prince  and  Princess  of  Hanover,  Princes  Christian  and 
Ernest,  Count  and  Countess  Platen,  and  the  leading  nobility 
of  Hanover  were  among  the  guests.  Every  one  came  in 
fancy  dresses  and  masks.  It  was  a  warm  summer  night, 
and  the  company  were  dispersed  about  the  dimly  illumin- 
ated gardens.  The  opportunities  of  flirtation  and  intrigue 
were  great,  and  if  we  may  believe  Poellnitz  the  Countess 
Platen  determined  to  improve  the  occasion  by  a  dramatic 
little  plot  of  her  own.  She  had  jealously  watched  the 
growing  intimacy  between  Konigsmarck  and  the  Princess, 
and  cast  about  for  an  opportunity  to  ruin  them — or  at 
least  the  Princess.  To  this  end  she  stole  one  of  Sophie 
Dorothea's  gloves  which  she  had  inadvertently  put  down 
at  supper  (it  was  one  of  a  pair  George  Louis  had  brought 
her  from  Flanders,  richly  embroidered  and  ornamented 
with  her  initials  and  coronet),  and,  concealing  it  in  her 

8* 


n6    THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

dress,  she  presently  lured  Konigsmarck  irjto  accompanying 
her  to  a  far-off  pavilion  in  the  gardens.  Here,  without  ado, 
she  plunged  into  a  violent  flirtation  with  him,  and  so  en- 
grossed his  attention  that  he  did  not  hear  footsteps  until 
two  men  stood  in  the  path  before  them  in  the  moonlight. 
They  were  Count  Platen  and  George  Louis.  The  Prince 
had  been  led  this  way,  seemingly  inadvertently,  by  the 
husband  in  agreement  with  his  wife.  Uttering  a  startled 
exclamation,  as  though  afraid  of  being  discovered,  Countess 
Platen  took  Konigsmarck  by  the  arm  and  fled  from  the 
pavilion  ;  at  the  same  time,  unperceived  by  him,  she  dropped 
the  Princess's  glove.  George  Louis,  who  was  not  near 
enough  to  distinguish  the  masked  lady,  asked  Count  Platen 
who  it  was.  The  wily  Minister  professed  ignorance,  but  on 
entering  the  pavilion  picked  up  the  glove  and  handed  it  to 
George  Louis,  who  recognised  it  as  one  of  a  pair  he  had 
given  his  wife.  His  jealous  suspicions  were  aroused,  and 
later  they  were  confirmed  by  hearing  the  Princess  ask  for 
her  missing  glove.  She  could  give  no  account  of  when 
and  where  she  had  lost  it,  and  so  far  as  the  Prince  was 
concerned  these  tactics  were  completely  successful.  Notori- 
ously unfaithful  himself,  he  was  only  too  ready  to  suspect 
his  wife  of  unfaithfulness. 

But  up  till  now  Sophie  Dorothea,  though  she  had  shown 
signs  of  wavering,  had  not  told  Konigsmarck  that  she  viewed 
him  in  any  light  but  as  a  friend.  He,  on  his  part,  had  now 
gone  far  beyond  the  bounds  of  the  most  privileged  friend- 
ship, and,  forgetful  of  her  rank  and  lonely  position,  had 
addressed  the  Princess  in  terms  of  extravagant  devotion. 
Had  she  been  wise,  Sophie  Dorothea  would  at  once  have 
closed  the  acquaintance.  But  she  was  not  wise ;  and  in  a 
court  of  universal  laxity  and  intrigue  she  saw  no  harm  in 
a  little  flirtation.  It  was  the  almost  universal  custom  of  the 
time.  Nearly  every  woman  of  youth  and  beauty,  whatever 
her  rank,  and  whether  married  or  not,  had  gallants  sighing 
for  her  smiles  and  wearing  her  favours.  The  Electress  of 
Brandenburg  (her  sister-in-law)  had  many  admirers,  and 
openly  avowed  her  preferences  ;  so  had  the  Duchess  of 
Saxe-Eisenach,  the  Princess  of  Etting,  and  other  princesses. 
Why  should  not  she  have  one  too  ?  She  was  piqued  by 
her  husband's  neglect,  flattered  by  Konigsmarck's  homage, 
and  perhaps,  too,  her  heart  was  touched.  She  had  known 


THE  EMBROIDERED  GLOVE  117 

him  from  childhood.  He  had  loved  her  always,  so  he  swore. 
He  was  the  ideal  lover,  young,  handsome,  and  ardent,  and 
she  was  hungry  for  love — even  love  like  this.  She  had  no 
idea,  when  she  listened,  of  going  beyond  the  bounds  of 
discretion  ;  yet  even  for  her  to  listen  was  indiscreet,  nay 
dangerous,  surrounded  as  she  was  by  spies  and  enemies. 
She  had  no  one  in  whom  to  confide ;  no  one  to  advise  her 
except  Eleonore  Knesebeck,  who,  though  devoted  to  her 
mistress,  was  a  sentimental,  silly  young  woman,  eager  to 
vary  the  monotony  of  her  duties  by  acting  as  go-between 
in  an  intrigue.  It  was  impossible,  now  that  suspicion  was 
aroused,  for  Konigsmarck  to  see  the  Princess  so  frequently 
as  he  had  done,  and  in  an  evil  moment  she  consented  to 
allow  him  to  write  to  her  from  time  to  time,  though  not 
promising  to  reply.  The  letters,  to  disarm  suspicion,  were 
to  be  addressed  to  Eleonore  Knesebeck. 

Thus  did  Sophie  Dorothea  first  open  the  sluice-gates  a 
little  way  to  a  little  stream,  which  later  swelled  into  a 
mighty  river,  carrying  her  and  Konigsmarck  before  it,  and 
engulfing  them  finally  in  the  rush  and  roar  of  its  waters. 
But  the  story  of  all  this  is  best  told  in  the  letters  them- 
selves. 


CHAPTER  XI. 

HISTORY  AND  AUTHENTICITY  OF  THE  .LETTERS.1 

I,  for  my  part,  value  letters  as  the  most  vital  part  of  biography. 

ELIZABETH  BARRETT  BROWNING. 

THE  original  manuscripts  of  the  remarkable  correspondence 
between  Sophie  Dorothea  and  Konigsmarck,  a  correspond- 
ence unparalleled  in  the  annals  of  passion,  except,  perhaps, 
by  the  love-letters  of  Mirabeau  to  the  Marquise  de  Monnier, 
are  still  preserved  in  the  University  Library  of  Lund,  in 
Sweden. 

The  history  of  the  letters  previous  to  their  finding  a 
resting-place  at  Lund  can  be  traced  back  through  many 
generations. 

It  will  be  noted  that  the  correspondence  begins  in 
July,  1691,  and  ends  in  December,  1693,  thus  covering  a 
period  of  two  and  a  half  years.  The  first  few  letters  of 
Konigsmarck  show  that  he  was  not  quite  sure  of  his  footing 
with  the  Princess,  and  the  liaison  between  them  was  yet  in 
the  bud.  Within  a  few  months  we  find  his  passion  not 
only  avowed  without  disguise,  but  reciprocated  by  the 
Princess  with  equal  ardour.  Except  for  a  break  in  the  first 
part  of  1 693,  the  letters  follow  the  period  of  their  love  story 
until  the  last  six  months,  January  to  June,  1694.  During 
the  greater  part  of  this  latter  time  Konigsmarck  was  at 
Dresden,  and  a  few  days  after  he  returned  to  Hanover 
he  was  assassinated  (July  I,  1694).  It  is  known  that  many 
letters  passed  between  the  Princess  and  Konigsmarck 
during  this  last  six  months,  and  a  bundle  of  letters  were 
seized  by  the  Hanoverian  Government  in  Konigsmarck's 
lodgings  a  few  days  after  his  murder.  These  last  letters 
and  probably  many  others  are  therefore  missing  from  this 
correspondence,  which  otherwise  forms  a  fairly  complete 

1  This  chapter  is  an  interpolation  dealing  with  the  history  and  authen- 
ticity of  the  correspondence  and  does  not  affect  the  narrative. 

118 


HISTORY  AND  AUTHENTICITY  OF  THE  LETTERS      119 

record  of  the  Princess's  love  story.  The  pertinent  question 
is,  how  came  the  many  hereafter  published  to  be  preserved  ?  1 

Konigsmarck,  as  we  have  seen,  had  two  sisters,  Amalie 
Wilhelmina,  who  married  Count  Carl  Gustav  Lewenhaupt. 
a  Swedish  nobleman,  who  held  for  a- time  a  commission  as 
colonel  in  the  army  of  the  Duke  of  Celle,  and  served  with 
the  troops  of  Brunswick-Liineburg  in  Flanders,  and  the 
beautiful  Aurora,  who  was  never  married.  Aurora  was  in 
the  confidence  of  the  lovers  and  on  terms  of  friendship  with 
the  Princess.  Countess  Lewenhaupt  must  also  have  been 
cognisant  of  the  affaire,  though  in  a  lesser  degree.  Dur- 
ing Konigsmarck's  connection  with  the  court  of  Hanover 
Aurora  resided  sometimes  at  Hamburg,  often  with  him  at 
Hanover,  and  was  occasionally  at  Celle,  Brunswick,  and 
other  places,  but  always  circling  around  the  courts  of  the 
Brunswick  princes.  The  Countess  Lewenhaupt  was  for 
the  most  part  with  her  husband,  whose  military  duties  kept 
him  much  at  Celle  ;  but  she  frequently  met  her  brother  or 
sister.  Both  sisters  often  saw  their  brother,  and  between 
him  and  them  there  existed  a  strong  affection. 

Aurora  sympathised  with  the  love  affair  between  her 
brother  and  the  Princess,  and  at  quite  an  early  stage  we 
find  her  aware  of  it.  Letters  were  often  sent  through  her 
hands ;  and  so  active  a  part  did  she  play  that  when  sus- 
picion was  aroused  in  the  autumn  of  1692,  Ernest  Augustus 
sent  her  a  message  to  the  effect  that  she  would  do  well  to 
give  Hanover  a  wide  berth  in  future.  For  the  lovers  to 
keep  each  other's  letters  in  their  several  possession  was 
dangerous,  and  they  were  unwilling  to  burn  them.  For 
their  safe  keeping,  therefore,  it  would  seem  that  both 
Konigsmarck  and  the  Princess  deposited  at  stated  periods 
their  letters  with  Aurora :  the  Princess  giving  up  those 
she  had  received  from  him,  and  Konigsmarck  those  he  had 
received  from  her.'2 

This  continued  until  the  end  of  1693.  In  the  six 
months  that  followed  (January  to  June,  1694)  Konigs- 

1  Those  published  in  this  book  are  all  from  the  collection  at  Lund.     But 
many  more    (doubtless  those    seized  by  the  Hanoverian    Government)  are 
stated  to  exist,  unpublished,  at  Berlin  and  Gmunden. 

2  In  the  Protocol  of  the  trial  of  Fraiilein  Knesebeck,  she  states  that  she 
was  commanded  by  the  Princess  always  to  return  his  own  letters  to  Konigs- 
marck, because  she  herself  did  not  dare  to  keep  them,  nor  did  she  think  them 
safe  even  in  the  hands  of  Knesebeck. 


rzo   THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

marck  did  not  see  his  sisters  ;  he  was  in  Saxony,  and  they 
were  at  Hamburg.  The  letters  he  had  received  from  the 
Princess  during  that  period  were  still  in  his  possession 
when  he  was  murdered,  and,  as  we  have  seen,  many  were 
seized  by  the  Government.  The  letters  the  Princess  had 
received  from  him  were  in  her  possession,  and  she  probably 
burned  as  many  as  she  could  on  the  first  hint  that  every- 
thing was  discovered.  On  the  other  hand,  the  Hanoverian 
Government  must  have  seized  some,  which  (with  her  own) 
were  used  against  her  at  the  divorce.  But  the  rest — those 
published  here— were  in  Aurora's  keeping  at  Hamburg, 
outside  the  jurisdiction  of  the  Elector  of  Hanover. 

Of  the  efforts  which  both  sisters,  especially  Aurora, 
made  to  discover  their  missing  brother,  and  to  bring  his 
assassins  to  justice,  we  shall  have  occasion  to  speak  later. 
They  mourned  their  brother  long  and  sincerely,  and  treas- 
ured everything  connected  with  his  memory.  Doubtless 
these  letters  were  among  their  most  cherished  possessions. 
Aurora,  it  is  well  known,  led  for  some  years  a  wandering 
and  adventurous  life,  and  for  better  security  she  must 
have  transferred  this  momentous  and  bulky  correspondence 
to  her  sister's,  Countess  Lewenhaupt's,  keeping.  Count 
Lewenhaupt,  soon  after  the  murder  of  his  brother-in-law, 
quitted  the  service  of  the  Duke  of  Celle,  and  returned  with 
his  wife  to  Sweden,  where  he  henceforth  lived  on  his  estates. 

From  this  time  the  history  of  the  letters  is  categor- 
ical, and  may  be  traced  step  by  step.  Amalie,  Countess 
Lewenhaupt,  kept  the  letters,  and  on  her  deathbed  gave 
them  to  her  son,  Count  Charles  Emil  Lewenhaupt,  telling 
him  to  cherish  them  with  great  care,  as  they  had  cost  "  her 
brother  his  life,  and  a  king's  mother  her  freedom  ".  Count 
Charles  Emil  Lewenhaupt  duly  fulfilled  his  mother's  in- 
junction,-and  the  letters  remained  among  his  most  carefully 
guarded  possessions  all  his  life.  He  left  two  sons,  the 
younger  of  whom,  Adam,  inherited  Ofvedskloster  where 
the  letters  were  then  kept.  Count  Adam  Lewenhaupt  sold 
Ofvedskloster  to  his  brother-in-law  Baron  Hans  Ramel, 
who  married  his  sister  Amalie  Beata.  In  this  way  the 
letters  passed  into  possession  of  the  Ramel  family,  and 
they  reposed  in  a  chest  in  the  library  of  Ofvedskloster  for 
many  years.  Amalie  Beata,  Baroness  Ramel  (nee  Lewen- 
haupt), died  in  1810,  and  at  her  death  bequeathed  the  letters 


HISTORY  AND  AUTHENTICITY  OF  THE  LETTERS      121 

to  her  daughter,  Elisabeth  Sophia  Amalie  Beata,  who  was 
married  to  Count  Gustaf  Adolph  Sparre.  The  offspring  of 
this  marriage  was  also  a  daughter,  Christina  Amalie  Hedvig 
Adelaide,  who  married  Count  Jacob  de  la  Gardie,  of  Lo- 
berod, the  founder  of  the  famous  De  la  Gardie  Archives. 
Count  de  la  Gardie,  who  was  a  wealthy  nobleman,  a  biblio- 
phile, and  an  antiquarian,  was  greatly  interested  in  these 
letters,  which  came  into  his  possession  in  1817  through  his 
marriage  with  the  lady  aforesaid.  Quite  apart  from  their 
historical  value,  the  way  in  which  they  had  been  handed 
down  through  generations  of  his  wife's  family  (she  was  the 
great-great-granddaughter  of  Countess  Lewenhaupt,  nee 
Konigsmarck)  gave  them  a  personal  interest  in  his  eyes. 
The  letters  were  removed  from  Ofvedskloster  to  Loberod, 
where  they  formed  part  of  his  celebrated  collection  of  books 
and  manuscripts. 

It  was  after  the  letters  came  into  Count  de  la  Gardie's 
possession  that  their  existence  became  known  to  the  outside 
world  ;  hitherto  they  had  been  treated  as  family  papers  of 
a  private  nature.  The  famous  collection  of  archives  at 
Loberod  attracted  scholars  from  far  and  wide.  In  1831 
Probster  Wiselgein,  in  his  work  De  la  Gardieska  Archivet 
(the  De  la  Gardie  Archives),  vol.  ix.,  mentions  that  this 
correspondence  forms  part  of  the  archives,  and  quotes  a 
single  letter  from  the  Princess  in  the  original  French  as  a 
specimen.  Two  years  after  this  same  letter  was  republished 
in  the  Magazin  fur  Literatur  des  Auslandes  (Journal  of 
Foreign  Literature),  1833.  But  the  correspondence  did 
not  receive  much  attention  until  1847,  when  Professor 
Palmblad,  of  the  University  of  Upsala,  in  the  Blatter  filr 
Literarische  Unterhaltung,  published  a  few  short  extracts 
in  the  original  French,  together  with  a  brief  introduction. 
This  he  afterwards  republished  as  an  appendix  in  his 
historical  romance,  Aurora  Konigsmarck.  To  Palmblad's 
labours  we  shall  have  occasion  to  refer  again. 

When  Count  de  la  Gardie  died  he  bequeathed  his 
almost  priceless  collection  to  different  libraries  in  Sweden. 
To  the  University  of  Lund  he  left  many  valuable  books 
and  manuscripts,  including  the  correspondence  of  Sophie 
Dorothea  and  Konigsmarck.  In  accordance  with  the 
Count's  bequest  the  letters  were  deposited  in  the  University 
Library  of  Lund  in  1848,  and  they  remain  there  until  this 


izz    THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

day.     It  is  not  easy  to  see  how  the  history  of  these  docu- 
ments could  be  better  authenticated.1 

Shortly  after  the  letters  were  deposited  at  Lund,  J.  H. 
Gadd,  who  from  1848  to  1850  held  the  post  of  assistant- 
librarian  to  the  university,  made  a  copy  of  the  corre- 
spondence. This  copy  he  afterwards  sold,  or  gave,  to  the 
late  Mrs.  Evelyn  Everett  Green,  a  lady  well  known  for  her 
historical  researches,  and  who  was  for  many  years  employed; 
in  the  State  Paper  Office.  Mrs.  Everett  Green,  who  was 
in  correspondence  with  Count  Schulenburg-Klosterrode, 
author  of  Die  Herzogin  von  Ahlden,  apparently  thought  of 
publishing  these  letters,  for  she  began  the  fragment  of  a 
preface.  But  for  some  reason  she  desisted  from  her  task,, 
and  in  1870  sold  Gadd's  manuscript  copy  to  the  British 
Museum.  This  copy,  in  French,  bears  nothing  to  show 
where  the  original  letters  are  preserved.  I  discovered  by 
accident  that  they  were  at  Lund,  when  at  Leipsig  in  1898. 
On  communicating  with  the  university  authorities  at  Lund 
I  found  that  none  of  them  had  any  knowledge  of  the 
manuscript  copy  in  the  British  Museum,  and  they  seemed 
doubtful  of  its  genuineness.  I  therefore  made  a  journey- 
to  Lund  for  the  purpose  of  consulting  the  original  manu- 
scripts, and  found  that  the  copy  in  the  British  Museum 
was  on  the  whole  a  faithful  one.  At  Lund,  too,  I  was  able 
to  trace  the  history  of  the  letters  and  to  examine  in  detail 
the  documents. 

It  would  be  hard  to  find  a  more  fitting  resting-place  for 
these  letters  than  the  university  library  of  Lund.  Nestling 
under  the  shadow  of  the  great  cathedral,  surrounded  by  the 
elms  and  limes  of  the  beautiful  Lundagard,  the  old  library 

1  Table  showing  the  descent  and  ownership  of  the  letters  from  the  time 
Aurora  Konigsmarck  gave  them  to  her  sister  until  the  present  day. 

Amalie,  Countess  Lewenhaupt  (nic  Konigsmarck), 
Count  Charles  Emil  Lewenhaupt  (her  son), 

Count  Adam  Lewenhaupt  (his  son), 
Amalie  Beata  Baroness  Ramel  (his  sister), 

Countess  Sparre  (her  daughter), 
Countess  de  la  Gardie  (her  daughter), 

Count  de  la  Gardie  (her  husband), 
The  University  Library  of  Lund,  1848. 


HISTORY  AND  AUTHENTICITY  OF  THE  LETTERS      123 

seems  to  breathe  the  very  spirit  of  the  past.  In  the  silent 
rooms,  with  their  mellow  tomes  and  paintings  of  dead  and 
gone  worthies,  there  reigns  a  profound  peace,  in  strong 
contrast  to  the  riotous  passion,  the  fret  and  the  fume,  the 
rapture  and  despair,  which  run  through  these  records  of  an 
ill-fated  love,  and  make  them  human  documents  indeed. 
As  we  read,  the  hopes  and  the  fears,  the  joys  and  the 
struggles  of  the  unlucky  lovers  rise  before  us  with  extra- 
ordinary vividness.  The  writers  live  and  move  and  breathe 
again  ;  the  air  is  peopled  with  their  presence  ;  and  then — 
we  look  up  from  the  page  and  come  back  to  the  old  library 
and  the  great  stillness,  and  realise  something  of  the  little- 
ness of  human  passions  beside  the  passionless  flight  of 
time.  Two  centuries  have  gone  ;  the  lovers  are  dead  ; 
the  hands  that  penned  these  burning  words,  the  eyes  that 
wept,  the  hearts  that  throbbed  as  they  were  written,  have 
crumbled  into  dust.  But  their  witness  is  here — here  in 
these  old  and  faded  pages,  which  breathe  even  now,  faint 
as  the  scent  of  dead  rose  leaves,  the  perfume  of  their 
passion. 

A  word  now  as  to  the  outward  semblance  of  these 
letters.  They  are  fairly  well  preserved,  the  paper  being 
for  the  most  part  of  a  tough  though  flimsy  nature,  which 
in  places  shows  the  handwriting  through.  The  ink  is  dim 
and  faded  to  a  dull  brown  ;  here  and  there  it  is  so  faint  as 
to  be  almost  illegible.  Konigsmarck's  letters  differ  in  size, 
some  being  written  on  the  ordinary  notepaper  of  the  day, 
others  on  scraps  torn  apparently  from  a  pocket-book  ;  some, 
too,  are  weather-stained,  as  though  they  had  travelled  far. 
Envelopes  in  all  cases  are  missing  ;  nor  were  they  generally 
used  in  those  days.  The  letter  was  folded  and  sealed. 
Some  of  Konigsmarck's  letters  bear  his  seal  in  red  or  black 
wax,  and  a  device — a  little  heart  within  a  large  one — with 
the  motto,  Cosi  fosse  il  vostro  dentro  il  mio.  One,  in  addi- 
tion, has  the  ends  of  a  green  silk  ribbon  under  the  seal, 
showing  how  the  letter  was  tied.  The  seal  represents  a 
flaming  heart  on  an  altar,  the  sun  shining  down  upon  it 
with  the  circumscription,  Rien  cCimpure  inallurne.  One, 
bearing  date,  Halle,  August  ^,  is  addressed  to  "  Mada- 
moiselle  la  Frole  de  Knesbeck,  a  Zelle"  ;  one  is  addressed 
"  a  la  Gouvernante,"  one  merely  "  Pour  la  Personne  Connue," 
one  "  la  Frole  de  Kronbugler  "  ;  but  there  are  none  directly 


124   THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

addressed  to  the  Princess.     All  Konigsmarck's  letters  are 
written  in  the  same  great  sprawling  hand. 

The  letters  of  the  Princess  are  written  on  paper  of  good 
quality,  and  almost  without  exception  of  uniform  size.  Like 
Konigsmarck's,  they  bear  evidence  of  having  been  folded  ; 
but  the  envelopes  are  missing,  and,  unlike  his,  none  of 
them  bear  seal  or  superscription.  They  are  written  in  two 
distinct  handwritings,  possibly  three,  which  bears  out  the 
theory  that  some  were  written  by  the  Princess  in  her  own 
hand,  some  in  her  handwriting  disguised,1  and  the  rest  by 
Knesebeck  at  the  Princess's  dictation.  But,  disguised  or 
undisguised,  transcribed  by  Knesebeck  or  the  Princess, 
they  are  easier  to  read  than  Konigsmarck's,  on  account 
of  their  better  penmanship,  though  occasionally  they,  too, 
show  traces  of  haste. 

The  letters  number  over  two  hundred,  and  form  two 
bulky  packets.  With  the  exception  of  a  few  fragments 
of  German  poetry  which  Konigsmarck  quotes  here  and 
there,  they  are  all  in  French,  that  being  the  language  then 
generally  used  at  courts,  and  especially  by  the  Princess, 
on  account  of  her  French  mother  and  education.  To 
Konigsmarck — a  Swedish  noble  by  birth — French  was 
more  familiar  than  German,  though  his  knowledge  of 
either  was  far  from  perfect.  The  letters  are  arranged  in 
'little  or  no  chronological  order,  and  run  in  batches  ;  thus 
we  have  first  a  batch  of  the  Princess's  letters,  then  a  batch 
of  Konigsmarck's,  then  another  of  the  Princess's,  and  finally 
another  batch  from  Konigsmarck.  Quite  two-thirds  are 
written  by  Konigsmarck  and  the  rest  by  the  Princess — if 
we  except  two  or  three  brief  notes,  or  rather  postscripts 
from  Knesebeck. 

If  the  lovers'  letters  differ  in  outward  appearance,  they 
differ  even  more  in  style  and  diction.  Konigsmarck's  are 
very  badly  written,  ill-spelt,  and  often  ungrammatical,  which 
may  be  explained  by  the  fact  that  he  was  writing  in  a 
foreign  language  which,  though  he  could  speak  it  fluently, 
he  had  not  thoroughly  mastered.  Often,  by  accident  or 
design,  he  falls  back  on  phonetic  spelling  of  French  words, 
which  at  first  renders  them  almost  impossible  to  decipher, 


1  Fraiilein  Knesebeck  in  the  Protocol  of  her  trial  expressly  states  that 
the  Princess  was  able  to  write  two  different  hands. 


HISTORY  AND  AUTHENTICITY  OF  THE  LETTERS      125 

and  it  is  only  by  reading  them  aloud  that  one  can  grasp 
their  meaning.     For  instance  : — 

Saite        —  Cette 
Can          =  Quand 
Sansaire  =  Sincere 
Cas          =  Qua 
Astor       =  A  cette  heure 

and  many  other  renderings  equally  erratic.  Konigsmarck's 
style,  like  his  handwriting,  was  rough-and-ready.  Many  of 
his  letters  were  written  in  haste  when  on  active  military 
service,  and  one  does  not  expect  literary  grace  from  a 
soldier  writing  often  under  difficulties,  and  always  in  a 
foreign  language.  His  sentences  are  abrupt,  and  frequently 
broken  by  exclamations,  interjections,  and  interrogations,, 
especially  when  he  writes  under  stress  of  excitement.  But 
he  has  a  knack  of  occasionally  enforcing  his  meaning  by  a 
happy  phrase  or  homely  illustration,  and  this,  combined 
with  frequent  allusions  to  men  and  things,  makes  his  letters 
of  more  general  interest  than  those  of  the  Princess.  Egotism 
is  the  dominant  note.  His  wit  has  at  times  a  knack  of 
degenerating  into  coarseness — a  coarseness  so  great  that 
even  in  that  coarse  age  we  cannot  help  wondering  how  a 
man  in  his  position  should  be  found  writing  such  things  to 
a  princess,  to  a  woman  he  loved  and  reverenced.  But  we 
have  to  remember  that  it  was  an  age  of  licence  and  freedom 
of  speech ;  and  even  the  letters  of  the  estimable  Electress 
Sophia  to  the  Duchess  of  Orleans,  whose  virtues  were 
unquestioned,  and  whose  intellectual  accomplishments  were 
far  in  advance  of  her  time,  were  disfigured  by  a  coarse- 
ness bordering  at  times  on  indecency.  If  a  great  princess 
could  so  write  to  another  princess  we  cease  to  wonder  at 
Konigsmarck,  who  was  a  man  and  a  soldier  and  surrounded 
by  the  licentiousness  of  camp  and  court.  Most  of  his  worst 
lapses  are  anecdotes  relating  to  his  companions  in  arms ; 
they  are  not  many,  and  I  have  taken  the  liberty  of  sup- 
pressing them,  since  they  are  not  germane  to  the  narrative. 
The  letters  of  the  Princess  are  very  different  in  style 
and  diction  from  those  of  her  lover.  They  are  absolutely 
free  from  coarseness  (in  this  respect  offering  a  favourable 
contrast,  for  instance,  to  the  letters  of  the  Electress  Sophia 
and  the  Duchess  of  Orleans),  and  give  evidence  of  a  refined 


iz6   THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

and  gentle  nature.  They  are  in  admirable  French,  and  if 
here  and  there  a  word  is  misspelt  it  is  evidently  the  result 
of  haste.  Many  of  the  Princess's  letters  are  written  with 
grace  of  style  and  felicity  of  diction,  to  which  no  translation 
can  do  justice.  The  burden  of  her  theme  is  ever  "  I  love 
thee,"  or  "  Thou  art  not  true  to  me  ".  The  whole  of  the 
correspondence,  indeed,  both  her  letters  and  Konigsmarck's, 
are  alternated  with  passionate  avowals  of  love  or  equally 
passionate  reproaches.  Theirs  was  not  a  love  that  ran 
smoothly,  but  was  broken  from  first  to  last  by  fears  from 
without  and  jealousies  from  within.  Yet  it  is  impossible 
not  to  see  that,  after  their  manner,  each  loved  the  other 
fondly. 

The  Princess  was  a  'ready  writer,  the  chief  blemish  of 
her  letters  being  a  tendency  to  repetition  and  an  extra- 
ordinary diffuseness  ;  she  would  take  pages  to  say  what 
might  have  been  compressed  into  a  few  sentences.  But 
this  is  a  fault  common  to  love-letters — which  are  not 
written  for  the  edification  of  the  world,  but  only  for  the 
one  to  whom  they  are  addressed  ;  and  we  must  not  judge 
them  by  the  ordinary  canons  of  literary  criticism.  In  the 
Princess's  case,  too,  there  was  often  a  necessity  for  her  to 
wrap  her  meaning  in  a  cloud  of  words,  lest  it  should  be  too 
readily  discovered,  if  her  epistles  fell  into  other  hands. 
Though  her  letters  are  in  two  (or  three)  handwritings,  they 
are  all  identical  in  style  and  expression — another  proof 
that  those  the  Princess  did  not  write  with  her  own  hand, 
disguised  or  undisguised,  she  dictated  word  for  word  to 
Knesebeck. 

An  elaborate  cypher,  or  rather  series  of  cyphers,  is  used 
throughout  the  correspondence  for  the  names  of  persons 
and  places.  To  this  cypher  the  lovers  alone  held  the  key. 
All  the  personages  mentioned  in  the  letters  are  disguised 
under  different  names  ;  as,  for  instance  : — 

L ' Aventuriere    Countess  Aurora  Konigsmarck. 

Le  Reformeur  (Le  Rt- 

formateur)     Prince  George  Louis. 

Don  Diego         The  Elector  Ernest  Augustus. 

La  Romaine      The  Electress  Sophia. 

Le  Grandeur     The  Duke  of  Celle. 

La  Pedagogue The  Duchess  of  Celle. 


HISTORY  AND  AUTHENTICITY  OF  THE  LETTERS      127 

La  Perspective The  Countess  Platen. 

La  Boule The  Electress  of  Brandenburg. 

LebonHomme Marshal  Podevils. 

L  Innocent         Prince  Ernest  Augustus. 

Colin Prince  Maximilian. 

La  Marionette Princess  of  Hesse. 

r     i3     L     -i7        \    '"     Hanoverian  Ministers. 
Le  Barbomlleur  J     ... 

La  Douairiere The  Princess  of  East  Friesland. 

La  Gazelle        Countess  von  Lewenhaupt. 

La  Grosse  Dondon    ...     Madame  von  Ilten. 

La  Confidents       ] 

La  Sentinelle         v  ...     Fraulein  von  Knesebeck. 

La  Gouvernante  } 

Leonisse  j 

La  Cceur  Gauche  h  ...     Princess  Sophie  Dorothea. 

La  Petite  Louche  } 

Le  Chevalier  \ 

Tercis  J Konigsmarck. 

Some  of  these  nicknames  are  not  very  complimentary 
to  the  persons  for  whom  they  are  intended,  but  they  are 
comparatively  easy  to  decipher.  The  task  is  much  more 
difficult  when  we  come  to  the  other  cypher,  in  figures. 
Speaking  roughly,  numbers  of  one  hundred  and  upwards 
signify  names  of  men  ;  two  hundred  and  upwards,  names 
of  women;  three  hundred  and  upwards,  names  of  places. 
As  for  example  : — 

i.oo  Elector  Ernest  Augustus. 

101  Duke  of  Celle. 

102  Prince  George  Louis. 

103  Marshal  Podevils. 

112  Prince  Maximilian. 

1 2O  Konigsmarck. 

128     Biilow. 

129     Bernstorff. 

200     The  Electress  Sophia. 

20 1      Princess  Sophie  Dorothea. 

202     Countess  Platen. 

207     Fraulein  von  Schulenburg. 

.214  Fraulein  von  Knesebeck. 


226     Countess  Aurora  Konigsmarck. 

227     The  Duchess  of  Celle. 

300     Hanover. 

301      Luisburg. 

302     Herrenhausen. 

305     ...     Celle. 

306     Brockhausen. 

In  the  letters  which  follow,  translated  from  the  French 
of  the  original  manuscripts  into  English,  I  have  endeavoured 
to  render  this  intricate  cypher  legible,  and  have  substituted 
everywhere  the  real  names  of  persons  and  places.  The 
task  of  translation  and  unravelling  the  cypher  has  not  been 
easy,1  and  if  an  error  should  be  discovered  it  must  not  be 
ascribed  to  any  inaccuracy  in  the  original  letters,  but  to  my 
rendering,  since  in  spite  of  every  care  it  is  impossible  to 
guard  against  the  possibility  of  a  chance  error.  I  have 
further  endeavoured  to  reduce  the  letters  to  something  like 
chronological  order — also  a  difficult  task,  for  only  four  have 
the  year  inscribed,  many  are  without  date,  some  have  the 
day  of  the  week,  and  a  few  the  time  of  day ;  and  in  such 
cases  it  is  only  from  the  text  that  one  can  guess  the  dates 
with  accuracy.  To  do  this  it  has  been  necessary  to  sort 
the  letters  from  the  batches  into  which  they  are  divided 
in  the  original  manuscripts,  and  to  allow  them  to  answer 
one  another  in  due  order.  In  the  correspondence  during 
the  campaign  of  1692,  for  instance,  it  will  be  seen  that 
Konigsmarck's  letters  and  those  of  the  Princess  answer  one 
another  freely.  I  have  also,  to  better  elucidate  the  text 
and  preserve  the  flow  of  the  narrative,  interspersed  the 
letters  with  a  record  of  current  events  gleaned  from  Colt's 
despatches  and  other  documents,  and  have  annotated  them 
where  necessary.  The  letters  hereafter  given  represent  two- 
thirds  of  the  whole  ;  the  remainder  has  been  omitted  simply 
because  it  is  made  up  mainly  of  repetition  and  unimportant 
details,  and  to  quote  it  in  full  would  be  to  weary  and  not  to 
edify.  For  the  first  time  these  letters  are  published  in  any 
language — if  we  except  the  few  fragments  (which  would 
not  make  more  than  six  pages  of  this  book)  given  by 

1  In  this  task  I  was  aided  by  the  fragment  of  a  key  to  the  cypher  found 
with  the  letters  at  Lund. 


THE    UNIVERSITY    LIBRARY,    LUND,    SWEDEN. 

(  Where  the  letters  are  preserved.) 


HISTORY  AND  AUTHENTICITY  OF  THE  LETTERS      1 29 

Palmblad  in  a  Swedish  book  long  since  out  of  print — and 
for  the  first  time  they  are  now  translated  into  English  from 
the  original  manuscripts,  edited,  and  compared  and  tested 
with  contemporary  records. 

Palmblad,  as  we  have  mentioned,  prefaced  his  extracts 
with  a  brief  introduction,  which  it  is  well  to  examine  in 
detail,  since  this  is  practically  the  only  medium  through 
which  the  existence  of  the  correspondence  has  hitherto 
been  known. 

W.  F.  Palmblad  was  a  man  of  considerable  literary 
repute,  a  professor  of  the  University  of  Upsala,  and  a  zeal- 
ous antiquarian.  But  he  lacked  one  quality  indispensable 
to  the  historian — accuracy  ;  he  was  too  ready  to  jump  to 
conclusions  without  first  verifying  his  facts  from  contem- 
porary records.  He  examined  the  manuscript  letters  when 
they  were  at  Loberod  in  the  possession  of  the  Count  de  la 
Gardie,  and  learned  their  history  from  their  owner,  which 
was  amply  verified  from  the  family  records.  He  then  made 
an  examination  of  the  correspondence  which  can  only  be 
regarded  as  cursory,  took  out  a  few  extracts  here  and  there, 
and  prefaced  them  with  an  introduction,  in  which  he  de- 
clares his  firm  belief  in  the  genuineness  of  the  letters,  but 
by  his  inaccuracies  unconsciously  does  damage  to  the  very 
point  he  labours  to  prove — inaccuracies  which  one  or  two 
subsequent  writers  have  seized  upon  as  proofs  of  the 
spuriousness  of  a  correspondence  they  have  never  seen. 
Later,  it  is  true,  another  authority,  Count  Schulenburg- 
Klosterrode,  who  also  believed  in  the  genuineness  of  the 
letters,  in  Die  Herzogin  von  A/ilden,  endeavoured  to  set 
Palmblad  right  on  certain  points  of  chronology  and  cypher, 
but  a  false  impression  had  been  given  of  the  correspondence 
which  it  was  not  easy  to  eradicate. 

Even  in  his  description  of  the  appearance  of  the  letters 
Palmblad  is  inaccurate.  He  speaks  of  postmarks,  but  there 
are  none  visible ;  he  describes  the  Princess's  letters  as 
written  "  in  an  elegant  hand,  on  very  fine,  gilt-edged  paper  ". 
It  is  a  mere  detail  ;  but  the  paper  is  not  gilt-edged,  and 
is  the  ordinary  letter-paper  of  the  day  ;  while  as  for  the 
"  elegant  hand,"  which  would  convey  the  idea  of  a  sloping 
Italian  penmanship,  the  Princess's  letters  are  in  two  distinct 
handwritings,  and  in  each  case  written  in  rather  a  bold  hand 
for  a  woman,  certainly  the  reverse  of  "  elegant ". 

9 


1 3o   THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

The  professor  has  also  made  mistakes  about  the  cypher, 
especially  the  cypher  in  numbers  ;  and  in  the  extracts  he 
publishes  he  has  -muddled  men,  women,  and  places  in  a 
hopeless  manner,  and  this  makes  nonsense.  His  extracts, 
which  are  taken  mainly  from  Konigsmarck's  letters,  are 
chiefly  made  up  of  the  racy  anecdotes,  which  for  reasons 
already  given  I  do  not  quote.  The  professor  has  collected 
every  one  of  these  anecdotes  (not  many  in  all),  and  gives 
them  as  a  fair  specimen  of  the  whole.  Doubtless  this 
course  avoided  chronological  and  other  difficulties  ;  but  to 
quote  them  to  the  exclusion  of  other  and  more  important 
matter  is  to  give  a  false  impression  of  the  correspondence 
and  the  man. 

Again,  Palmblad  makes  the  assertion,  "Of  Konigsmarck's 
liaison  with  the  Countess  Platen  the  letters  do  not  say  a 
word  ".  Here  again  it  is  evident  he  has  made  a  mistake  in 
the  cypher,  and  confused  the  Countess  with  some  one  else, 
for,  as  will  be  seen,  the  letters  teem  with  allusions  to  Countess 
Platen  (either  as  La  Perspective  or  as  202),  and  there  are 
frequent  references  to  an  understanding  or  flirtation  between 
her  and  Konigsmarck.  The  Princess  is  again  and  again 
inflamed  with  jealousy  on  this  account,  and  reproaches  her 
lover  bitterly,  while  he  is  equally  fluent  with  his  excuses. 

But  the  gravest  inaccuracy  is  yet  to  come.  In  his  survey 
of  the  letters  Palmblad  made  no  attempt  to  classify  them  or 
arrange  them  in  order  of  date — a  task  which  he  declares  to 
be  "  impossible  ".  As  he  had  little  knowledge  of  Hanoverian 
history  at  the  time  the  letters  were  written,  or  of  con- 
temporary events,  the  task  was  doubtless  impossible  to 
him  ;  he  would  therefore  have  done  wisely  to  have  left  it 
alone  altogether,  and  not  have  tried  to  cover  his  ignorance 
by  the  wildest  guesswork.  Yet  this  is  what  he  has  done. 
He  says  :  "  In  one  letter  mention  is  made  of  Bussche,  who 
was  the  trusty  friend  and  confidant  of  Prince  George,  and 
who  died  in  the  beginning  of  the  year  1688,  and  four  other 
letters  have  the  year  1693  given,  so  we  know  with  certainty 
that  the  correspondence  was  spread  over  a  period  of  six 
years".  And  again:  "In  the  letter  in  which  Bussche  is 
mentioned,  therefore,  written  before  or  during  the  year 
1687,  Konigsmarck  is  on  the  most  trusted  footing  with  the 
Princess  ;  and  in  the  year  1685  Konigsmarck  was  evidently 
in  Hanover ;  and  soon  after  that  it  appears  that  the  very 


HISTORY  AND  AUTHENTICITY  OF  THE  LETTERS      1 3 1 

close  intimacy  between  them  began.  The  Princess,  her 
daughter,  who  afterwards  married  the  King  of  Prussia,  was 
born  March  16,  1686  j1  and  it  is  a  matter  of  surmise  and 
strong  doubt  whether  the  family  of  Prussian  kings  spring 
from  the  Guelph  or  Konigsmarck  blood."  The  whole  of 
this  theory  is  built  upon  the  surmise  that  the  Bussche 
mentioned  (not  in  one  letter  only,  but  at  least  a  dozen)  was 
the  same  Bussche  who  married  Countess  Platen's  sister,  and 
who  died  early  in  1688. 

Now  the  Bussche  family  was  a  numerous  one,  and  held 
a  high  position  in  Hanover.  If  Palmblad  had  read  the 
letters  carefully,  and  had  possessed  any  knowledge  of 
Hanoverian  affairs,  he  would  have  seen  from  the  context 
that  the  Bussche  mentioned  was  not  the  man  who  died  in 
1688,  but  Philip  Albert  Bussche,  a  privy  councillor  and 
prominent  minister,  who  later  was  president  of  the  divorce 
court  which  pronounced  judgment  on  the  Princess.  Thus 
the  statement  that  the  letters  began  in,  or  before,  1687  and 
extended  over  a  period  of  six  years  is  absolutely  incorrect, 
and  the  endeavour  to  cast  a  slur  upon  the  legitimacy  of  the 
Princess's  daughter,  afterwards  Queen  of  Prussia,  is  con- 
sequently abortive.  There  exists  no  shred  of  evidence  to 
show  that  Konigsmarck  was  in  Hanover  in  1685  (he  was  in 
England),  nor,  indeed,  until  1688,  a  year  after  the  birth  of 
the  Princess's  daughter.  And  it  will  be  seen  from  the  letters 
themselves  that  the  affaire  between  Konigsmarck  and  the 
Princess  did  not  assume  an  intimate  footing  until  the  end 
of  1691  or  the  beginning  of  1692  :  until  then  the  borderland 
had  not  been  crossed.  Whatever  were  his  later  relations 
with  the  Princess,  he  was  neither  at  Hanover  nor  Celle 
when  her  children  were  born,  and  there  is  no  doubt  as  to 
their  legitimacy.  Palmblad's  slur  on  the  birth  of  the  Queen 
of  Prussia  is  as  gross  a  fabrication  as  the  Jacobite  lie  of 
calling  George  II.  "the  little  Konigsmarck".  The  whole 
theory,  which  can  only  have  been  invented  to  gratify 
Palmblad's  hatred  of  the  House  of  Prussia,  therefore  falls 
to  the  ground  ;  and  it  is  no  wonder  that,  starting  from  so 
false  a  chronological  point,  he  finds  it  "  impossible "  to 
arrange  the  letters  in  any  order  of  date. 

I    have    dwelt    fully   on    Palmblad's    introduction    and 

1  This  is  an  error,  she  was  born  in  1687. 

9* 


1 32    THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

extracts  not  because  of  its  merit,  which  is  little,  nor  its  size, 
which  is  infinitesimal,  but  because  it  has  hitherto  been 
practically  the  only  publication  which  deals  with  these 
letters,  and  students  and  historians  have  had  no  other 
criterion  whereby  they  might  test  their  genuineness.  There 
were  the  original  letters  at  Lund,  it  is  true  ;  but  the  few 
authorities  such  as  Schaumann  and  Kocher,1  who  have 
passed  adverse  judgment  on  this  correspondence,  never  took 
the  trouble  to  go  there  and  examine  the  manuscripts  per- 
sonally, but  founded  their  theories  on  Palmblad's  version. 
Yet  it  is  obviously  impossible  to  pronounce  a  fair  judgment 
on  a  correspondence  of  this  kind  without  seeing  the  original 
manuscripts,  and  with  no  knowledge  of  it  save  a  few  frag- 
mentary extracts  and  an  introduction  full  of  chronological 
and  other  errors.  It  is  only  by  examining  the  whole  cor- 
respondence in  the  original  manuscripts,  and  comparing  it 
with  contemporary  documents,  that  a  just  idea  of  its  value 
can  be  gained. 

Judged  by  this  test,  these  letters  will  reveal  themselves 
as  absolutely  genuine,  and  further  examination  will  show 
that  they  contain  internal  evidence  of  their  authenticity. 
Let  us  briefly  glance  at  this  also. 

For  our  present  purpose  the  correspondence  may  be 
divided  into  : — - 

1.  Konigsmarck's   letters   to  the  Princess   prior  to  the 

campaign  in  Flanders  of  1692  (July,  1691,  to  June, 
1692). 

2.  The    Princess    and    Konigsmarck's    letters    to    one 

another  during  the  campaign  in  Flanders  and  until 
the  granting  of  the  Hanoverian  Electorate  (June  to- 
December,  1692). 

3.  The    Princess    and    Konigsmarck's    letters    to    one 

another,  when  she  was  at  Brockhausen  and  Celle 
with  her  parents,  and  he  at  Hanover  (June  to  July, 

1693). 

4.  Konigsmarck's  letters  to  the  Princess  when  he  was 

campaigning  against  the  Danes  and  after  his  return 
to  Hanover  (August  to  December,  1693). 
This  is  merely  a  rough  classification,  but  it  will  serve. 

1  Against  the  adverse  opinion  of  these  authorities  may  fairly  h^  set 
Thackeray  and  Carlyle,  who  accept  the  letters  as  genuine.  But,  like  Scnau- 
mann  and  Kocher,  they  never  saw  the  originals. 


HISTORY  AND  AUTHENTICITY  OF  THE  LETTERS      133 

The  times  were  stirring  in  the  courts  of  Hanover  and 
Celle,  and  indeed  in  all  Europe,  because  of  the  war  of  the 
great  Alliance  against  Louis  XIV.  Konigsmarck  served 
with  the  allied  armies  in  the  campaign  in  Flanders  of  1692, 
as  colonel  of  a  Hanoverian  regiment,  and  the  following 
year  he  served  as  colonel  of  a  regiment  of  the  troops  of 
Hanover  and  Celle  in  the  abortive  campaign  of  the  Bruns- 
wick-Liineburg  princes  against  the  Danes  on  the  banks  of 
the  Elbe.  Many  of  his  letters  to  the  Princess  were  written 
when  on  active  military  service ;  and  though  one  does  not 
look  to  love-letters  for  news,  it  is  only  to  be  expected  there 
should  be  some  allusion  to  current  events.  We  find  in 
Konigsmarck's  letters  from  Flanders  mention  of  William 
of  Orange,  Prince  George  Louis,  the  Elector  of  Bavaria, 
Duke  Frederick  Augustus  of  Saxony  (afterwards  the 
Elector  Augustus  the  Strong),  and  other  exalted  person- 
ages who  were  with  the  allied  armies  at  that  time ;  also  of 
certain  events  in  the  campaign,  such  as  the  battle  of  Stein- 
kirk,  the  attempted  siege  of  Charleroy,  and  so  forth.  In 
the  same  way,  the  following  year,  during  the  campaign 
against  the  Danes,  allusion  is  made  to  the  burning  of 
Ratzeburg  and  the  negotiations  between  the  Danes  and 
the  Brunswick-Liineburg  princes.  The  same  may  be  said 
of  the  Hanoverian  intrigues  for  obtaining  the  electorate. 
If  these  mentions  of  well-known  persons  and  events  were 
in  any  way  incorrect,  it  would  afford,  of  course,  strong 
presumption  against  the  genuineness  of  the  letters  ;  but 
they  are  quite  accurate.  Moreover,  the  allusions  are  made 
evidently  without  design,  and  arise  naturally  and  casually 
in  the  course  of  the  correspondence  as  things  known,  not 
only  to  the  writer,  but  for  the  most  part  to  the  person  to 
whom  he  is  writing. 

It  may  be  admitted  that,  so  far,  this  does  not  prove 
much,  for  the  events  and  personages  in  connection  with  the 
great  campaign  in  Flanders,  for  instance,  were  so  well 
known  that  only  a  clumsy  forger  would  make  a  mistake. 
But  the  case  is  far  otherwise  when  we  come  to  analyse  the 
many  references  which  both  the  Princess  and  Konigsmarck 
freely  make  concerning  the  persons  who  figure  in  the  life  of 
Hanover  and  Celle,  and  incidents  which  were  occurring  from 
day  to  day  in  those  little  courts.  We  have,  for  instance, 
frequent  mention  of,  or  allusion  to,  the  arrival  of  this  prince, 


i34   THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

or  the  departure  of  that  princess,  the  coming  and  going  of 
foreign  envoys,  and  the  movements  of  the  Hanoverian  court 
from  Hanover  to  Luisburg,  or  Luisburg  to  Hanover  or 
Herrenhausen  ;  of  the  perpetual  motion  of  the  court  of  Celle 
from  Celle  to  Brockhausen,  to  Epsdorff,  to  Wienhausen, 
to  Gohre,  and  so  on  ;  of  visits  between  the  ducal  brothers, 
of  journeys  to  Hamburg,  Brunswick,  or  Berlin,  of  carnivals 
and  court  festivities,  all  of  which  could  not  possibly  have 
been  written  except  by  some  person,  or  persons,  intimately 
acquainted,  or  connected,  with  the  daily  life  of  these  petty 
courts.  Now,  a  forger  of  spurious  love-letters  would  cer- 
tainly avoid  frequent  reference  to  minute  events,  and  content 
himself  with  writing  mere  vague  avowals  of  passion l  which 
might  be  written  by  any  one  to  any  one  ;  in  short,  he  would 
keep  to  generalities  and  avoid  particularities,  which  are  so 
many  pitfalls  into  which  he  might  tumble,  and  by  his  errors 
betray  his  fraud. 

Here,  then,  we  have  a  test.  If  the  frequent  references  to 
persons  and  incidents  in  these  letters  can  be  proved  to  be 
incorrect  or  inaccurate  ;  if,  for  instance,  it  can  be  shown 
that  when  the  Electress  of  Brandenburg  is  said  to  have  been 
visiting  Hanover  she  was  at  Berlin,  that  when  Prince  Max 
is  stated  to  have  been  at  Celle  he  was  in  Italy,  that  when 
the  court  of  Celle  was  at  Brockhausen  it  was  at  Epsdorff, 
that  when  the  Princess  writes  from  Celle  she  was  at  Hanover, 
that  when  certain  envoys  are  represented  as  having  been  at 
Hanover  they  were  not  there,  or  certain  festivities  are  de- 
scribed which  did  not  take  place, — if  it  can  be  shown  that 
these  things  (of  no  importance  in  themselves,  but  very  im- 
portant in  their  bearing  on  the  letters)  are  falsely  and 
inaccurately  stated,  then  it  follows,  as  a  matter  of  logic,  that 
the  letters  are  themselves  false  and  inaccurate  and  could  not 
have  been  written  by  the  persons  from  whom  they  profess  to 
come.  But  if,  on  the  other  hand,  it  can  be  proved  by  in- 
dependent testimony  and  "  undesigned  coincidences  "  (as 
Paley  would  say)  that  the  mention  of  persons  is  accurate 
and  the  allusions  to  even  minute  events  correct  in  every 
detail,  it  affords  the  strongest  possible  proof  of  the  genuine- 
ness and  authenticity  of  the  letters. 

1  The  letter  of  Lassaye,  quoted  on  pp.  73-74,  affords  an  excellent  illus- 
tration of  this. 


HISTORY  AND  AUTHENTICITY  OF  THE  LETTERS      135 

But  how  to  apply  such  a  test  ? 

At  first  sight  this  is  difficult,  for  the  daily  life  of  these  little 
German  courts  is  not  a  matter  of  history,  and  the  ordinary 
historical  records  shed  little  light  upon  it.  Fortunately  I 
found  in  the  State  Paper  Office,  in  London,  the  despatches 
and  entry  book  of  Sir  William  Button  Colt,  sometime 
English  envoy  at  Hanover,  which  furnish  exactly  what  we 
want — independent  and  authoritative  documents  with  which 
we  may  test  the  accuracy  of  many  of  the  minute  events 
mentioned  in  these  letters.  Colt  was  envoy  to  the  princes 
of  Brunswick  from  1689  to  1693  ;  his  entry  book  covers  the 
period  from  July,  1689,  to  December,  1692,  so  that  the  period 
of  eighteen  months  only  is  coincident  with  the  letters,  which 
do  not  begin  until  July,  1691.  Early  in  January,  1693,  ne 
went  to  Dresden,  and  afterwards  was  but  little  at  Hanover 
or  Celle,  so  further  evidence  is  lacking.  But  there  is  enough 
for  our  purpose.  In  Colt's  entry  book  we  have  a  record, 
week  by  week,  almost  day  by  day,  of  the  courts  of  Hanover 
and  Celle  ;  it  is  wholly  made  up  of  copies  of  his  despatches 
to  the  English  Government.  At  his  death  the  book,  with 
other  official  documents,  was  sent  to  London,  and  has  since 
been  preserved  in  the  archives.  It  was,  of  course,  never 
seen  by  any  one  in  Hanover  outside  the  English  Legation, 
and  it  has  only  been  open  to  the  public  in  England  since 
the  Home  Office  and  Foreign  Office  papers  of  that  period 
were  removed  to  the  State  Paper  Office.  It  is  scarcely 
necessary,  therefore,  to  say  that  between  this  official  record 
and  the  correspondence  now  at  Lund  there  could  have  been 
no  possible  collusion.  By  no  possibility  could  the  writers  of 
these  letters  have  seen  Colt's  despatches.  Where  coinci- 
dences arise  they  are  absolutely  undesigned,  and  the  points 
of  agreement  are  those  which  necessarily  occur  when  truth- 
ful and  independent  records  touch  on  the  same  incidents. 
Colt's  despatches  are  a  record  of  facts  and  events  ;  the 
love-letters 'of  Sophie  Dorothea  and  Konigsmarck  are  love- 
letters  first  of  all,  and  where  mention  is  made  of  persons 
and  events,  it  is  made  incidentally  and  secondarily.  Never- 
theless, many  coincidences  occur  and  afford  strong  cor- 
roboration  of  the  genuineness  of  the  letters.  I  have 
noted  them  in  more  detail  in  the  correspondence  itself. 
Here  it  will  suffice  to  quote  a  few  in  illustration  of  my 
meaning : — 


136        THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 


The  Letters. 

On  and  after  June  20,  1692, 
the  Princess  dates  her  letters 
from  Brockhausen,  showing  that 
her  parents,  with  whom  she  was 
staying,  had  moved  thither  from 
Celle. 

In  her  letter  of  June  23, 
1692,  the  Princess  mentions  that 
Prince  Max  is  staying  with  the 
court  of  Celle  at  Brockhausen. 


"You  have  been  dancing  at 
?te." — Konigsmarck  to  the 
Princess,  Venlo,  July  T5T. 


"  I  am  grieved  you  are  dis- 
pleased because  I  went  to 
Monsieur  Colt's  fete,  but  I 
could  not  avoid  going ;  they 
pressed  me  so  much." — -The 
Princess  to  Konigsmarck,  Brock- 
hausen, (?)  July  2,  1692. 

"  What  was  the  day  of  the 
fete  ?  "  —  Konigsmarck  to  the 
Princess,  Dist,  July  T57. 

"Sun-day  was  \hefete  I  spoke 
to  you  about." — The  Princess  to 
Konigsmarck,  Celle,  July  |-|, 
1692. 

"  They  say  the  Electress  of 
Brandenburg  is  at  Luisburg  on 
a  visit  to  her  parents." — The 
Princess  to  Konigsmarck,  Celle, 
July  |f,  1692. 


Colt's  Despatches. 

"The  Duke  of  Celle  is  now 
at  Brockhausen." — Colt's  De- 
spatch, June  17,  1692. 


In  his  despatches  of  this  time 
Colt  also  mentions  that  Prince 
Max  was  staying  with  the  Duke 
of  Celle  at  Brockhausen,  he 
being  in  disgrace  with  his  father 
because  of  the  Moltke  affair. 

From  Colt's  Despatch,  Han- 
over, June  20,  1692,  we  learn 
that  on  Sunday,  the  i8th,  he 
gave  a  great  "  diversion,"  which 
the  Duke  and  Duchess  and  all 
the  court  attended. 


"  Moltke  was  executed  on 
Monday,  and  the  court  of 
Hanover  has  gone  to  Luisburg 
to  be  out  of  the  way." — Colt's 
Despatch,  Hanover,  July  18, 
1692. 


HISTORY  AND  AUTHENTICITY  OF  THE  LETTERS      137 

The  Letters.  Coifs  Despatches. 

"The  floods   still   detain   us  "The    extraordinary     floods 

here  unfortunately." — The  Prin-  have  kept  the  Duke  from  Celle." 

.cess  to  Konigsmarck,  July  2, 1692.  — Colt's  Despatch,  July  4, 1692. 

"  We     start     to-morrow     for  "  The  Duke  since  his  return 

Celle." — The  Princess  to  Konigs-  hither.  .   .  ." — Colt's   Despatch, 

march,    Brockhausen,    July    7,  Celle,  July  n,  1692. 
1692. 

Her    next   letter,   July   9,    is 
dated  from  Celle. 


"  My  Lord  Portland  showed 
me  much  favour,  and  assured 
me  the  King  held  me  in  his 
esteem." — Konigsmarck  to  the 
Princess,  Wavern,  August  ^f, 
1692. 

"  The  Duke  of  Celle  has  lost  a 
great  many  men  [in  the  Battle 
•of  Steinkirk]." — Konigsmarck  to 
the  Princess,  from  the  camp  near 
Wavern,  about  August  5,  1692. 

The  Princess,  to  Konigs- 
marck, in  a  letter  from  Celle, 
August  Tfig-,  1692,  notifies  the 
movements  of  the  court,  and 
says  in  two  days  she  will  accom- 
pany her  mother  to  Wiesbaden 
{which  she  does). 

"  Max  is  going  the  day  after 
to-morrow  to  meet  the  Electress 
of  Brandenburg,  and  will  ac- 
company her  to  Luisburg." — 
The  Princess  to  Konigsmarck, 
Celle,  August  T\,  1692. 

"They  tell  me  the  Electress 
of  Brandenburg  has  postponed 
her  visit.  She  was  to  have 
arrived  two  days  after  I  left. 


Colt  mentions  in  his  de- 
spatches that  Lord  Portland 
was  with  the  King  in  Flanders 
during  the  campaign  of  1692. 


"The  Duke  here  is  really 
very  much  troubled  for  the  loss 
of  his  troops  in  the  late  action." 
—Colt's  Despatch,  Celle,  August 
5,  1692. 

"This  court  [Celle]  will  the 
next  week  remove  from  hence, 
the  Duke  to  follow  his  hunting, 
and  the  Duchess  goes  to  Wies- 
baden, near  Mayence,  for  her 
health."— Colt's  Despatch,  Celle, 
August  5,  1692. 

"The  Electress  of  Brand- 
enburg is  passing  by  here  on 
her  way  to  Luisburg,  where  the 
Hanoverian  court  is  at  a  coun- 
try house." — Colt's  Despatch, 
Celle,  August  12,  1692. 

"Just  now  we  have  the  news 
that  the  Electress  of  Branden- 
burg doth  not  come  so  soon  as 
she  intended,  all  things  having 


138        THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 


The  Letters. 

All  the  horses  were  ordered 
for  her  equipage.  The  Duke 
had  given  up  to  her  his  apart- 
ments at  Luisburg,  and  they 
also  brought  a  band.  All  that 
for  nothing!" — The  Princess 
to  Konigsmarck,  Wiesbaden, 
August  fi,  1692. 

"  My  news  from  your  part 
of  the  world  [Hanover]  tells 
me  the  Duke  is  going  to  hunt 
at  Epsdorff,  where  your  father 
already  is." — Konigsmarck  to  the 
Princess,  Denise,  September  |£, 
1692. 

"  I  was  hindered  the  day 
before  yesterday  from  finishing 
my  letter  by  the  alarm  that  the 
French  were  going  to  attack 
Charleroy,  but  it  came  to  no- 
thing." —  Konigsmarck  to  the 
Princess,  Afflegen,  October  y^, 
1692. 


Colt's  Despatches. 

been  provided  for  her." — Colt's 
Despatch,  Celle,  August  if,  1692, 


In  his  despatch,  September 
15,  1692,  Colt  mentions  that  the 
Duke  of  Celle  is  at  Epsdorff. 


"  We  have  just  heard  the 
welcome  news  that  the  French 
have  failed  in  their  design  on 
Charleroy."  —  Colt's  Despatch^ 
Gohre,  October  T7T,  1692. 


"The  journey  to  Berlin  will  "The    journey  to  Berlin    is 

not  take  place." — Konigsmarck  postponed."  —  Colt's  Despatch^ 

to  the   Princess,   Hanover,    No-  Hanover,  November  18,  1692. 
vember,  1692. 

These  few  coincidences,  examples  of  many  more,  afford 
proofs  of  the  genuineness  of  the  correspondence,  which  a 
perusal  of  it  as  a  whole  cannot  fail  to  strengthen.  The 
very  faults  of  the  letters  go  to  prove  their  authorship.  But 
the  strongest  evidence  of  all,  in  my  opinion,  is  to  be  found 
in  the  frequent,  and  unconscious,  self- revelations  of  the  per- 
sonality of  the  writers.  These  revelations  do  not  always 
show  the  lovers  in  the  most  favourable  light,  but  at  least 
they  are  very  human.  Love  has  been  defined  as  Fego'isme 
a  deux.  If  that  be  true,  it  would  be  hard  to  find  a  stronger 
illustration  of  it  than  these  letters  afford. 


CHAPTER  XII. 

THE  DAWN  OF   PASSION. 
(1691.) 

What  can  we  fear,  we  two  ? 
O  God,  Thou  seest  us  Thy  creatures  bound 
Together  by  that  law  which  holds  the  stars 
In  palpitating  cosmic  passion  bright ; 
By  which  the  very  sun  enthralls  the  earth, 
And  all  the  waves  of  the  world  faint  to  the  moon. 
Even  by  such  attraction  we  two  rush 
Together  through  the  everlasting  years. 

STEPHEN  PHILLIPS,  Paolo  and  Francesca. 

THE  first  mention  of  Konigsmarck  in  Colt's  despatches 
tallies  with  the  first  letter  in  the  following  correspondence, 
and  sets  at  rest  the  question  as  to  whether  Konigsmarck 
actually  held  a  commission  in  the  Hanoverian  service. 
Some  doubt  had  arisen  concerning  the  safety  of  Hamburg ; 
and  Colt,  writing  to  Lord  Nottingham,  says,  "  There  is  not 
the  least  appearance  of  any  danger  for  the  city  of  Hamburg. 
The  troops  of  Hanover  march  towards  the  Elbe  and  two 
regiments  of  Foot  under  Konigsmarck  and  Cordons."  l 

It  was  while  Konigsmarck  was  absent  on  this  expedi- 
tion that  his  correspondence  with  the  Princess  began. 
The  first  letter,  written  while  he  was  on  the  march,  runs 
as  follows  : — 

"  AHT,  July  i.8 

"  I  am  in  extremis,  and  the  only  thing  that  can  save  me 
is  a  few  lines  from  your  incomparable  hand.  If  I  had  the 
good  fortune  to  behold  them  I  should  forthwith  be  healed. 
I  hope  you  will  not  be  so  cruel  as  to  refuse  me  this  favour,, 
for,  since  it  is  you  who  cause  my  sufferings,  it  is  only  just 
that  you  should  send  me  comfort.  Were  I  not  writing  to- 

1  Colt's  Despatch,  Celle,  |"°e  28,  1691. 

'  July  7   ' 

2  Possibly  Alt  =  Altkloster. 

139 


140   THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

one  for  whom  my  respect  is  as  great  as  my  love,  I  would 
find  better  terms  to  express  my  devotion  ;  but,  fearing  to 
offend,  I  end  here,  only  beseeching  you  not  to  forget  me 
wholly,  and  to  believe  me  always  your  slave." 

The  Princess  did  not  respond  at  once ;  she  had  not 
promised  to  answer  Konigsmarck's  letters,  though  she 
consented  to  receive  them.  She  must  have  known  how 
dangerous  it  was  for  her  to  embark  on  a  correspondence 
of  this  kind  ;  she  hesitated,  and,  hesitating,  yielded.  After 
a  little  time  she  seems  to  have  sent  him  a  few  lines,  and 
that  the  trend  of  her  epistle  was  not  rebuke  may  be 
gathered  from  his  reply : — 

"[ON  THE  MARCH,  undated.]1 

"  I  received  your  answer  to-day.  How  anxious  I  have 
been  all  this  time  !  I  vow  the  fear  that  you  had  utterly 
forgotten  me  has  been  the  cause  of  my  illness  lasting  so 
long  ;  the  suspense  gave  me  intense  suffering.  Now  that  I 
know  the  contrary  I  pick  up  courage,  and  shall  hope  soon 
to  see  you  again.  Verily,  it  is  I  who  should  complain,  I 
who  am  constrained  to  take  so  many  precautions  and  suffer 
cruel  suspense.  But  I  can  now  bear  my  hapless  lot  with 
fortitude,  since  the  most  amiable,  captivating,  and  charming 
being  in  the  universe  is  the  cause  of  all.  For  the  rest,  I 
will  never  change  unless  you  compel  me.  Ah  !  how  happy 
I  should  be  in  your  service ! — my  bliss  would  be  perfect 
and  I  should  wish  for  nothing  else  in  the  world  !  These 
words  of  mine  mean  a  great  deal ;  I  do  not  know  whether 
you  weigh  them  well.  If  you  would  graciously  deign  to 
answer  me  two  words,  I  should  quite  recover,  and  then  be 
better  able  to  assure  you  by  word  of  mouth  that  I  am  verily 
your  most  obedient  slave." 

Alas !  the  Princess  did  not  weigh  his  words  well  ; 
perhaps  she  did  not  grasp  their  full  import,  certainly  she 
did  not  realise  to  what  they  must  inevitably  lead.  On 
Konigsmarck's  return  he  seems  to  have  presumed  over- 
much on  the  Princess's  condescension,  for  he  was  ever  a 
bold  lover.  She  treated  him  with  reserve,  and  took  alarm 
at  his  temerity  and  her  imprudence. 

1  Wherever  square  brackets  occur  the  matter  is  interpolated. 


THE  DAWN  OF  PASSION  141 

Konigsmarck  was  only  at  Hanover  a  week,  and  then 
went  off  again  to  Hamburg  on  a  diplomatic  mission  to  the 
King  of  Sweden.1  The  Kings  of  Sweden  and  Denmark  at 
first  had  been  inclined  to  join  the  confederation  of  the 
Allies,  and  sent  envoys  to  the  conference  at  the  Hague  ; 
but  after  the  fall  of  Mons  they  showed  signs  of  wavering, 
and  were  now  intriguing  with  the  petty  German  courts, 
with  the  object  of  forming  what  William  of  Orange  called 
a  "  Third  Party  in  Europe  ".  Duke  Ernest  Augustus,  already 
disaffected  and  leaning  towards  France,  true  to  his  policy 
of  selling  to  the  highest  bidder,  coquetted  with  this  Third 
Party,  and,  without  consultation  with  the  Dukes  of  Celle 
and  Wolfenbiittel,  he  entered  on  an  offensive  and  defensive 
treaty  with  Sweden. 

The  fact  that  Konigsmarck  was  despatched  on  this 
mission  shows  that  he  still  stood  high  in  the  favour  of  the 
Duke  of  Hanover,  who  doubtless  sent  him  thinking,  as  he 
was  a  Swede  by  birth,  he  would  be  persona  grata  with  the 
King  of  Sweden.  In  this  Ernest  Augustus  was  mistaken, 
for  the  Swedish  monarch  loved  not  absentee  nobles,  and 
disapproved  of  Konigsmarck's  holding  a  commission  in  the 
Hanoverian  service.  Later  he  marked  his  displeasure  in  a 
decided  way.  Frequent  efforts  were  even  now  made  to 
induce  the  Count  to  quit  an  alien  service  and  enter  that  of 
his  native  King,  and  it  would  have  been  the  right  and 
proper  ihing  for  him  to  do  ;  but  there  was  a  magnet  at 
Hanover  which  drew  him  thither  with  a  force  he  could  not 
resist.  His  passion  for  Sophie  Dorothea  had  completely 
mastered  him  ;  without  her,  life  was  worthless  to  him,  and 
he  was  ready  to  cast  away  every  consideration  to  remain 
by  her  side.  While  absent  on  this  mission  he  wrote  this 
letter  to  the  Princess,  evidently  in  answer  to  a  note  from 
her : — 

"  HAMBURG,  July  24. 

"If  you  had  been  free  from  blame  you  would  not  have 
deigned  to  write  at  all ;  yet  in  spite  of  the  way  in  which 
you  have  treated  me,  I  needs  must  worship  you  still.  The 
sorrow  and  contrition  you  express  have  determined  me  to 

1 "  Since  my  last,  July  31,  the  Count  Konigsmarck  is  sent  from  Hanover 
with  the  ratification  of  the  late  Treaty  to  Hamburg,  either  to  carry  it  to 
Sweden  himself  or  send  it  thence." — Colt's  Despatch,  Celle,  August  4,  1691. 


142   THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

leave  here  the  day  after  to-morrow.  If  you  still  wish  to 
comfort  a  poor  dejected  heart  torn  by  jealousy  and  love, 
let  me  come  back.  You  well  know  it  is  probably  the  only 
favour  I  shall  ever  ask  of  you,  for  I  hope  the  good  God  will 
take  me  out  of  this  world  rather  than  let  me  suffer  so.  Do 
not,  I  implore  you,  refuse  my  prayer,  and  believe  that 
whatever  course  you  may  force  me  to  take  I  shall  never 
cease  to  love  you. 

Alas  !  I  love  my  destruction, 
And  nurse  a  fire  within  my  breast 

Which  will  speedily  consume  me. 
I  am  well  aivare  of  my  perdition, 
Because  I  have  aspired  to  love 

Where  I  should  only  have  worshipped."  * 

From  this  it  would  seem  there  was  a  likelihood  of 
Konigsmarck's  not  returning  to  Hanover  at  this  time,  and 
he  had  probably  threatened  to  enter  the  service  of  the  King 
of  Sweden.  But,  whether  by  desire  of  the  Princess  or  not, 
he  came  back,  and  she  gave  him  audience  as  before.  Timid 
and  fearful  though  she  was,  she  could  not  resist  the  temp- 
tation of  playing  with  fire, — the  very  danger  lent  a  zest. 
But  still  the  Princess  held  back  from  committing  herself 
definitely,  and  her  uncertain  attitude  towards  her  lover 
'  threw  him  into  a  tumult  of  alternative  hope  and  despond- 
ency. The  state  of  his  mind  is  expressed  in  the  following 
letter  :— 

"[HANOVER,  undated.] 

"  I  am  in  the  depths  of  despair  at  finding  so  little 
opportunity  of  speaking  to  you.  I  dare  not  even  admire 
the  eyes  that  give  me  life.  For  pity's  sake  let  me  see  you 
alone,  that  I  may  say  four  words — only  four  small  words. 
Oh  !  how  dearly  it  costs  me  to  love  you  !  But  the  joy  of 
speaking  to  you  now  and  then  makes  amends  for  all  the 
pain.  I  shall  go  away  to-morrow.  God  knows  if  I  shall 
ever  see  you  again,  my  life,  my  goddess !  The  thought 
that  we  may  never  meet  more  is  death  to  me.  I  feel  ready 
to  plunge  a  dagger  into  my  heart ;  but  since  I  must  live,  I 
pray  that  it  may  be  always  for  you." 

1  Some  lines  of  German  doggerel  which  can  only  be  rendered  thus. 


THE  DAWN  OF  PASSION  143 

His  threat  to  leave  Hanover  was  not  carried  out  for 
the  "  four  words  "  were  granted,  and  the  intimacy  went  on 
ripening  until  the  end  of  August,  when  the  Duke  of  Hanover, 
attended  by  his  ministers  and  a  numerous  suite,  went  to 
Brunswick  to  meet  his  cousin  Antony  Ulrich  in  conference, 
for  Ernest  Augustus  still  remained  hostile  to  the  Allies.1 
Konigsmarck  went  in  his  train,  but  Sophie  Dorothea  re- 
mained at  Hanover.  On  the  journey  Konigsmarck  wrote 
to  the  Princess,  and  again  on  receiving  an  answer  from  her. 
That  the  intrigue  must  have  grown  during  those  few  weeks 
is  evident  from  the  fact  that  the  cypher  agreed  upon  between 
them  now  makes  its  appearance  in  the  correspondence,  and 
from  the  bolder  and  more  affectionate  tone  of  his  letters. 
Hitherto  he  had  signed  himself  Votre  esclave,  or  Votre  tres- 
obeissant  valet ;  now  he  ends,  Adieux,  emable  Brune.  Je 
vous  embrasse  les  jenous.  Truly  a  stride  in  intimacy. 

"[BRUNSWICK,]  August  — 

"  No  mortal  was  ever  so  happy  as  I  when,  on  arriving 
here,  I  found  your  letter.  I  am  now  in  your  good  graces, 
and  am  losing  all  the  weak  suspicions  that  tore  my  heart 
in  twain.  Do  not  doubt  my  love  ;  God  be  my  witness,  I 
have  never  loved  as  I  love  you.  Were  you  to  see  me  now 
you  would  exclaim,  '  Is  it  possible  that  any  man  can  be  so 
downcast  ? '  My  dejection  is  wholly  the  result  of  absence 
from  you.  My  noble  travelling  companion 2  could  tell  you 
of  the  state  in  which  he  sees  me  daily,  though  you  may  be 
sure  that  I  hide  from  him  the  cause.  You  may  not  believe 
it,  but  on  the  word  of  a  man  of  honour,  I  am  often  so  over- 
come that  I  am  near  swooning  away  ;  and  yesterday  evening, 
when  I  was  out  walking,  and  thinking  of  the  many  days 
that  I  must  pass  before  seeing  you,  I  became  so  agitated 
that  it  brought  on  a  palpitation  of  the  heart,  and  I  was 
obliged  to  return  home.  I  know  not  what  would  have 
happened  had  not  my  servant  brought  me  a  cordial,  and 
•even  then  it  was  a  long  time  before  I  recovered.  Were  it 
not  for  your  dear  letter,  I  should  have  utterly  broken  down. 
Your  medicine  is  excellent  for  my  malady  ;  send  me  some 
oftener.  ...  I  am  ready  to  cast  at  your  feet  my  life,  my 

1  Colt's  Despatch,  Brunswick,  August  28,  1691. 

a  Probably  Prince  Ernest  Augustus,  youngest  son  of  the  Duke  of  Hanover . 


144   THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

honour,  my  future,  my  fortune.  I  have  forsworn  all  other 
women  for  you  ;  if  you  doubt  this,  name  any  one  you  would 
like  me  to  abandon,  and  I  will  never  speak  to  her  again. 
A  dieu.v,  eniable  B rune.  La  poste  pars,  il  faux  finir.  Jevous 
embrasse  les  jenous."  T 

The  court  returned  from  Brunswick,  Konigsmarck  in 
its  train,  and  remained  at  Hanover  through  September. 
Again  the  Princess  became  alarmed  at  the  growth  of  the 
intimacy  ;  she  saw  herself  on  the  brink  of  a  precipice,  and 
as  she  did  not  want  to  fall  into  it,  she  urged  her  lover  to 
go  away  for  a  time.  Konigsmarck  promised  obedience,  but 
fell  ill  of  malarial  fever,  which  he  had  contracted  in  the 
Morea — an  illness  of  which  he  did  not  fail  to  make  the 
most.  The  Princess's  sympathies  were  touched  ;  nothing 
more  was  said  about  his  leaving,  and  during  his  sickness 
she  even  seems  to  have  been  so  imprudent  as  to  pay  him 
stolen  visits  at  his  house  by  night.  It  was  not  difficult. 
The  house  where  Konigsmarck  is  reputed  to  have  lived  in. 
Hanover  is  in  a  street  hard  by  the  palace.  There  was  a 
way  through  the  gardens  in  those  days,  and  under  cover  of 
the  darkness,  disguised,  with  the  help  of  Knesebeck,  the 
Princess  could  have  avoided  notice.  Besides,  at  that  time 
Konigsmarck  probably  had  his  sister  Aurora  staying  with 
him,  and  she  could  be  made  the  excuse  in  case  of  discovery. 
But,  all  the  same,  the  risk  was  considerable.  The  Princess 
felt  that  she  had  gone  too  far,  for  when  Konigsmarck 
recovered  she  again  tried  to  check  his  ardour.  All  this  is 
touched  upon  in  the  four  following  letters  which  Konigs- 
marck wrote  to  the  Princess  during  this  period. 

"  [HANOVER,  undated.] 

"  Alas !  why  do  you  hold  out  the  hope  of  letting  me 
see  you  alone  without  meaning  it  ?  I  know  you  too  well  : 
you  are  not  brave  enough  to  venture  on  such  a  course,  and 
I  do  not  even  ask  you,  for  fear  you  should  expose  your- 
self to  danger.  You  wish  me  to  leave.  It  is  settled  my 
journey  begins  to-morrow  week.  You  wish  it — that  is 
enough.  I  see,  alas !  too  well  that  everything  is  against 
me.  To  live  in  Hanover  without  your  society  is  impossible. 

1  Here  and  elsewhere  the  writers  are  responsible  for  their  French. 


THE  DAWN  OF  PASSION  145 

I  would  rather  go  and  plough  the  earth  than  stay  here 
under  such  conditions.  Oh  !  if  I  could  only  crawl  away 
somewhere  and  die  quietly!  But,  after  all,  nothing  matters. 
I  can  no  longer  hope  for  happiness.  My  Intimate1  takes 
tolerable  care  to  keep  us  apart,  and,  for  him  to  succeed, 
you  have  only  to  give  credence  to  all  he  may  tell  you.  I 
hope,  however,  that  the  love  you  seem  to  bear  me  will 
hinder  you  from  being  deceived.  If  you  wish  to  do  me  a 
favour,  let  me  know  with  whom  you  talk  at  court ;  it  is  not 
from  jealousy  that  I  ask,  only  from  interest.  If  you  answer 
this  the  same  messenger  will  be  waiting  to  receive  your 
letter,  at  the  same  spot.  Comfort  me,  I  implore  you,  for  I 
suffer  much  for  love  of  you.  If  by  chance  you  should  play 
[cards]  in  the  grand  hall,  my  man,  for  fear  of  being  seen, 
will  be  waiting  in  the  gallery  leading  to  your  apartments.'* 

"  You  have  laid  down  a  law  which  it  will  be  hard  for 
me  to  keep — to  be  all  day  long  without  seeing  you,  but, 
since  you  wish  it,  I  must  obey.  I  hope,  however,  that  you 
will  let  me  wait  on  you  in  your  apartments  this  evening. 
If  you  cannot  manage  this,  will  you  meet  me  to-night  at 
my  house?  Let  me  know  your  decision.  Should  you 
decide  on  the  latter  course,  you  will  find  no  one  at  my 
place ;  the  door  will  be  open,  so  come  in  boldly  and  with- 
out fear.  I  am  dying  of  impatience  to  see  you.  Answer 
me  soon  that  I  may  know  what  to  do.  Farewell,  dear 
heart." 

"  Nothing  could  have  comforted  me  more  in  my  sickness 
than  your  sweet  letter,  I  find  it  full  of  tenderness.  I  am 
sorry  you  have  found  the  time  so  tedious.  I  suffer  from 
the  same  misfortune,  and  have  no  chance  of  being  happier 
to-day  unless  you  wish  to  play.  If  my  fever  be  not  too 
great,  I  will  pass  under  your  windows  in  the  hope  of  seeing 
you.  You  will  not  refuse  me  this  grace  ;  you  know  the 
sight  of  you  will  be  a  soothing  balm  in  my  sickness  ;  a 
visit  from  you  would  be  an  infallible  remedy.  You  speak 
to  me  of  passion.  Alas  !  it  is  for  me  to  speak  of  it — mine 
is  so  great  that  it  will  consume  me  utterly  at  last.  Oh ! 
my  dear,  my  dear  !  do  you  think  that  you  love  with  as 

1  Prince  Ernest  Augustus. 
10 


146   THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

much  passion  as  I  love?  ...  It  is  cruelly  hard  for  me 
not  to  be  with  you  always — I  am  compelled  to  keep 
away  from  you,  God  knows  with  what  grief.  The  Count 
de  Reuss  l  prevents  me  from  ending  my  letter  as  I  would." 

"  Of  a  truth  I  was  ill  pleased  with  the  cold  airs  you 
treated  me  to  yesterday,  and  1  spent  the  night  most  miser- 
ably. 1  was  in  great  sorrow  and  fain  to  weep,  and  all  these 
emotions  made  me  very  feverish  for  nearly  three  hours. 
I  vow,  my  divine  beauty,  that  I  never  remember  being  in 
such  a  pitiful  plight  before.  'Alas!  alas!'  I  cried,  'God 
burns  me  with  sickness,  and  gives  me  no  comfort,  for  He 
freezes  the  heart  of  my  divinity,  and  life  is  intolerable.' 
I  threw  myself  on  my  knees,  tears  in  my  eyes,  and  prayed 
that,  if  it  were  true  that  you  loved  me  no  longer,  I  might 
die.  ...  I  cannot  tell  you,  therefore,  the  joy  your  letter 
gave  me.  I  kissed  it  time  and  again.  I  hate  myself  for 
having  thought  you  guilty  of  inconstancy  ;  I  cast  myself  at 
your  feet,  praying  pardon,  and  I  promise  never  to  be  so 
ready  to  believe  things  again. 

"  I  am  awaiting  Her  Highness's  commands.2  When  you 
give  me  leave  I  shall  fly  to  you  ;  and  if  I  am  not  wanted, 
I  shall  show  that  I  cannot  attach  myself  to  any  one  else, 
for  I  shall  take  the  first  mail  coach  to  join  my  regiment. 
I  hope  that  in  time  Fortune  will  get  tired  of  persecuting 
me  so  cruelly,  and  Fate  will  be  in  my  favour ;  but  whatever 
misfortunes  may  befall,  I  shall  bear  them  with  joy  so  long 
as  the  heart  I  adore  remains  constant  to  me.  My  happiness 
and  fortune  are  there,  my  ambition  is  bounded  there.  For 
pity's  sake  believe  me  faithful.  To  convince  you  the  better 
how  I  love  you,  how  I  worship  you,  I  sign  this  with  my 
blood.  Whilst  you  love  me,  you  will  be  worshipped  by 

"  KONIGSMARCK. 
"  (Written  in  blood.)" 

Duke  Ernest  Augustus  was  now  setting  out  on  an 
autumn  visit  to  the  Duke  of  Celle  at  his  hunting-seats  of 
Epsdorff  and  Gohre  '"  The  Duke  of  Celle  was  much  keener 

1  The  Count  de  Reu«s  was  the  uncle  by  marriage  of  Sophie  Dorothea ; 
he  had  married  Angelica  d'Olbreuse,  sister  of  the  Duchess  of  Celle. 
*I.e.,  the  commands  of  the  Princess. 
3  Colt's  Despatch,  October,  1691,  Epsdorff. 


._«  .<n  •-! 

L'Av.. ,i.«:..  i    JF  ONE  OF  KUNIGSMARCK'S  LETTERS  TO  THE  PRINCESS. 
Pitotoglaphedfrom  the  original  manuscript  in  tlie  University  Library  of  Lund. 


THE  DAWN  OF  PASSION  147 

on  the  chase  than  on  affairs  of  state.  Every  autumn  he 
went  to  Epsdorff,  a  village  some  eight  miles  from  Hamburg, 
where  he  had  a  schloss,  to  hunt  the  stag  and  the  wild  boar  ; 
and  then  to  Gohre,  a  remote  spot  some  fifty  miles  from 
Celle.  He  took  his  duchess  and  his  court  with  him  ;  and 
this  year  he  combined  pleasure  with  business,  for  he  invited 
the  Duke  of  Hanover  and  Duke  Antony  Ulrich  to  hunt 
with  him  by  day  and  discuss  affairs  of  state  in  the  evening. 
The  result  of  this  visit  was  that  the  Duke  of  Hanover  was 
persuaded  to  take  up  a  neutral,  and  no  longer  hostile, 
attitude  towards  William  of  Orange. 

Princess  Sophie  Dorothea  was  setting  out  for  Epsdorff 
with  her  father-in-law,  but  the  day  before  starting  she  was 
taken  ill.  Konigsmarck  at  first  hoped  that  the  indisposi- 
tion was  feigned,  in  order  to  avoid  her  departure  from 
Hanover  and  from  him. 

"  Alas  !  "  he  laments,  "  we  shall  never  be  happy.  No 
sooner  do  I  recover  from  sickness  than  my  adored  one  sinks 
under  it.  I  suffered  in  mine,  but  yours  makes  me  suffer  a 
great  deal  more  ;  it  hurt  me  so  much  to  see  you  in  pain 
that  I  wished  myself  a  hundred  miles  away.  You  will  say 
that  was  not  very  kind,  but  I  could  not  bear  to  see  you  in 
such  agony.  If  perchance  your  illness  were  not  so  grave 
as  it  seems,  it  would  be  a  little  comfort,  for  I  might  think 
you  were  pretending,  for  love  of  me." 

He  quickly  found  that  she  was  not  pretending,  and  as 
soon  as  she  recovered  the  Princess  went  to  Epsdorff  and 
then  to  Gohre.  Konigsmarck  suggested  that  he  should  go 
to  Hamburg,  which  was  near  the  latter  place,  so  that  he 
might  see  something  of  the  Princess  ;  but  she  wisely  begged 
him  not  to  go,  and  he  went  to  spend  the  period  of  absence 
with  his  regiment,  which  was  quartered  near  Hanover.  A 
little  later  he  writes  : — 

"[FROM  THE  CAMP,  undated.] 

"  I  have  been  hoping  to  receive  one  line  from  your 
charming  hand.  Can  it  be,  after  all  you  told  me,  that  I 
am  quite  forgotten  ?  I  cannot  believe  it.  I  will  pardon 
you  this  time,  but  have  pity.  Without  an  assurance  of 
your  love  I  cannot  live.  ...  I  will  not  go  to  Hamburg. 

10* 


148   THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

I  take  Heaven  for  my  witness  that  since  you  have  been 
away  from  me  I  have  not  spent  an  hour  without  thinking 
of  you,  without  picturing  your  charms.  I  delight  in  doing 
so  ;  it  nourishes  my  poor  heart  crushed  with  sadness.  Why 
cannot  I  take  wings  like  my  desire  ?  I  should  this  moment 
be  in  your  lovely  arms,  tasting  the  sweet  delights  of  your 
lips.  ...  I  have  already  brushed  away  the  thing  asked  of 
me,  and  I  hope  to  succeed,  but,  remember,  it  is  for  the  love 
of  you  that  I  am  giving  everything  up.1  I  am  shut  up  here 
in  my  room  without  seeing  any  one  ;  I  scarcely  ever  leave 
it.  I  am  away  with  my  thoughts,  far  away  from  the  earth. 
If  by  chance  an  officer  wants  to  speak  to  me  concerning 
the  regiment,  I  am  furious  at  losing  so  much  time  without 
thinking  of  you.  I  hope  after  all  these  assurances  you  will 
not  ask  me  again  whether  I  love  you.  If  you  still  doubt 
it  will  kill  me.  But  I  must  tell  you  that  I  have  a  consola- 
tion here,  close  to  me  ;  not  a  pretty  girl  but  a  bear,  which 
I  feed.  If  you  should  fail  me  I  will  bare  my  chest  and  let 
him  tear  my  heart  out.  I  am  teaching  him  that  trick  with 
sheep  and  calves,  and  he  doesn't  manage  it  badly.  If  ever 
I  have  need  of  him — God  help  me  !  I  shall  not  suffer  long." 

During  this  separation  Konigsmarck  addressed  other 
letters  to  the  Princess  in  a  similar  strain,  full  of  extravagant 
expressions  of  passion.  It  is  not  necessary  to  quote  them, 
because  they  are,  in  the  main,  a  repetition  of  what  has  gone 
before.  The  Princess  apparently  answered  some  of  the 
letters,  but  she  was  chary  of  writing  to  him  from  Epsdorff, 
for,  in  spite  of  all  the  caution  observed,  the  intrigue  had 
begun  to  excite  suspicion.  It  was  mentioned  to  the 
Duchess  of  Celle,  and  she  took  the  opportunity  of  her 
daughter's  visit  to  remonstrate  with  her,  and  to  implore 
her  to  avoid  further  communication  with  Konigsmarck. 
The  warnings  of  her  mother,  who  dearly  loved  her,  aroused 
the  Princess  to  a  sense  of  peril.  She  made  another  effort 
to  draw  back.  When  she  returned  to  Hanover,  she  wrote 
to  Konigsmarck  urging  him  to  marry,  as  the  only  way  of 
freeing  them  both'  from  the  dangers  that  threatened  them. 
Her  letter  called  forth  the  following  remonstrance  :— 

1  Probably  he  refers  to  an  appointment  offered  him  by  the  King  of 
Sweden. 


THE  DAWN  OF  PASSION  149 

"[HANOVER,  undated.] 

"  Alas !  the  miserable  day  that  I  have  feared  so  much 
has  dawned.  I  must  marry,  since  you  wish  it ;  it  shall 
be  done.  I  will  obey  your  wishes  ;  it  is  enough  that  you 
will  have  it  so.  My  death-sentence  is  inscribed  by  the 
hand  I  adore.  I  confess  I  should  never  have  expected  to 
see  so  dreadful  a  sentence  passed  on  me  by  you.  But  of 
what  am  I  complaining?  I  must  remember  that  I  have 
loved  you,  and  I  ought  to  have  known  the  sex  better  than 
to  believe  all  you  vowed  to  me.  Alas !  I  was  weak  and 
believed  it ;  I  must  now  be  firm  enough  to  support  the 
consequences.  Your  cruelty  goes  too  far,  for,  unless  you 
wished  to  wound  me,  you  could  never  have  treated  me 
thus.  Why  has  not  God  given  you  a  heart  less  cruel  and 
me  a  heart  less  tender? — we  should  agree  better  then. 
I  have  never  been  but  yours  ;  I  wanted  to  be  so  all  my 
life,1  but  you  do  not  regard  my  constancy.  .  .  .  You  wish 
me  to  marry  to  save  myself  from  destruction,  but  you  do 
not  reflect  that  marriage  would  surely  bring  about  my  ruin. 
There  are  two  ways  of  escape  from  this  dilemma.  The 
first,  and  the  more  agreeable  to  me,  is  for  you  not  to  suffer 
me  to  marry  ;  and  if  my  ruin  follows,  as  I  foresee,  not  to 
forsake  me.  The  second  will  be  easier  for  you.  It  is  to 
let  me  marry,  and  swear  to  me  on  your  oath  that  you  will 
always  cherish  the  affection  you  have  seemed  to  show  me. 
I  will  wait  until  your  answer  comes,  which  I  hope  to  receive 
from  your  hand  (not  disguised,  if  you  please)  ; 2  and  I  mean 
to  regulate  my  conduct  accordingly,  so  that  1  may  have 
nothing  to  reproach  myself  with.  But  you  love  me  no 
longer — your  head  has  triumphed  over  your  heart ;  and  it 
is  not  even  enough  that  you  love  me  no  longer,  you  wish 
me  to  love  you  no  more.  What  a  hard  thing  !  How  will 
it  be  possible  for  me  to  obey?  No,  Madame,  in  spite  of 
all,  I  shall  always  adore  you  ;  my  love  will  be  extinguished 
only  with  my  life.  Pray  believe  this  from  your  most 
humble  and  affectionate  servant." 

1  A  reference  to  their  early  friendship. 

2  This  is  a  reference  to  the  fact  that  some  of  the  Princess's  letters  to 
him  at  this  time  were  dictated  by  her  only,  and  actually  written  by  Knese- 
beck  (La  Confdente)  to  disarm  suspicion.     Some  too  she  wrote  in  a  disguised 
hand. 


150   THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

Sophie  Dorothea  was  by  nature  weak  in  judgment, 
strong  in  passion.  She  could  not  sit  down  and  pen  the 
sentence  of  what  she  supposed  must  be  lifelong  wretched- 
ness to  her  lover,  and  urge  him  to  marry  while  his  heart 
was  still  wholly  devoted  to  her.  She  had  neither  the 
courage  nor  the  firmness  to  insist  on  separation  ;  in  fact, 
until  she  came  face  to  face  with  the  alternative  of  giving 
him  up  for  ever,  she  had  not  realised  how  much  she  loved 
him  nor  how  great  an  influence  he  had  gained  over  her. 
So  the  marriage  scheme  was  dropped.  She  wrote  him  to 
the  effect  that  she  could  not  help  loving  him,  but  he  must 
restrain  himself  and  be  mote  prudent  in  the  future.  She 
was  rewarded  by  an  ecstatic  reply : — 

"  I  am  the  happiest  man  in  the  world.  If  it  be  true 
that  you  love  me  as  you  say,  and  your  love  will  last  always, 
where  is  the  bliss  to  equal  mine?  I  fear  my  joy  will  be 
too  apparent,  that  every  one  will  see  in  my  eyes  it  can  only 
emanate  from  you.  I  will  restrain  myself  as  much  as  I 
can  ;  but  '  when  the  heart  is  so  proud  the  eyes  play  the 
traitor'.  Your  eyes,  more  than  I  dared  hope,  declared  to 
me  last  evening  the  feelings  of  your  heart.  I  am  so  over- 
joyed that  I  am  hardly  able  to  express  myself.  I  hope  to 
tell  you  this  evening  all  I  am  not  writing." 

It  was  now  the  autumn.  Military  operations  in  Flanders 
had  reopened  in  the  summer,  but  the  campaign  of  1691 
had  been  more  or  less  of  a  farce.  The  two  armies,  that  of 
William  and  that  of  Louis,  had  marched  and  counter- 
marched, advanced  and  retreated,  without  coming  to  an 
engagement,  and  after  having  thus  performed  a  stately 
minuet  for  some  months,  both  armies  retired  to  winter 
quarters.  The  Brunswick  prince  took  no  part  in  the  cam- 
paign, and  all  this  time  Prince  George  Louis,  who  was  very 
friendly  with  William,  had  been  sulking  over  his  enforced 
inaction  at  home.  In  October  he  was  seized  with  a  serious 
attack  of  measles.1  His  illness  aroused  the  slumbering 
sympathies  of  his  wife,  and  she  nursed  him  towards  re- 
covery ;  doubtless  she  felt  that  such  conduct  was  the  best 
answer  to  the  malicious  tales  of  her  enemies.  Konigsmarck 

1  Colt's  Despatch,  October  -,  1691. 


THE  DAWN  OF  PASSION  151 

was  thrown  into  despair  on  hearing  of  the  improved  re- 
lations between  Sophie  Dorothea  and  her  husband,  for  his 
passion  for  her  was  very  virile  and  very  selfish.  He 
addressed  to  her  this  jealous  protest : — 

"  With  what  grief  I  hear  that  you  have  been  in  other 
arms  than  mine !  I  cannot  express  what  I  feel,  but  it 
must  be  so,  I  suppose  ;  at  least,  you  suffer  it  with  regret, 
and  take  care  to  tell  me.  I  confess  I  should  never  have 
enough  power  over  myself  to  endure  the  embraces  of  a 
person  I  did  not  love  ;  I  would  rather  see  all  the  Furies 
than  an  object  I  detested.  However,  your  promises  re- 
assure me  of  your  -affection,  and  give  me  comfort ;  without 
that  small  consolation  I  should  be  miserable  indeed.  I 
adore  and  love  you  to  distraction,  yet  1  must  not  see  you  ! 
Are  there  any  torments  like  this  in  hell  ?  But  I  can  endure 
the  anguish  by  remembering  my  martyrdom  is  through  you, 
and  it  is  for  love  of  you  I  suffer :  you  are  well  worth  the 
pain.  1  am  wrong  to  be  so  disturbed  since  you  assure  me 
of  your  love.  '  What  will  assure  me  of  your  constancy  ? ' 
Your  conduct  is  the  guarantee  I  ask  of  you.  It  is  super- 
fluous for  me  to  make  new  protestations  of  love  and  faith- 
fulness, for  I  have  given  you  solid  and  convincing  proofs  ; 
but  if,  haply,  you  will  not  believe  these,  believe  the  vows  I 
made  you  and  am  ready  to  make  at  any  time." 

Despite  this  letter,  the  illness  of  the  Prince  made  the 
Princess  more  friendly  with  her  husband,  and  this  friendli- 
ness was  accompanied  by  a  coldness  on  her  part  towards 
Konigsmarck.  When  he  remonstrated  she  excused  herself 
on  the  ground  that  he  had  shown  her  indifference.  This 
called  forth  the  following  : — 

"  If  I  had  behaved  like  you  I  might  be  accused  of 
indifference,  but  when  sorrow  wears  me  to  a  shadow  you 
are  cruel  to  thus  accuse  me.  All  the  people  at  court  are 
asking  me  what  ails  me  ;  they  think  my  face  as  haggard 
as  if  I  were  recovering  from  a  serious  illness.  I  have  been 
obliged  to  pretend  that  I  fell  downstairs  ;  but  many  will 
not  believe  this  excuse.  Let  them  think  what  they  please, 
so  long  as  they  do  not  suspect  that  the  true  cause  of  my 
illness  arises  from  your  injustice  and  disdainful  airs.  Do 


1 52    THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

you  think  me  the  man  to  easily  condone  such  conduct?  If 
so,  you  are  mistaken.  I  would  rather  go  off  to  the  Indies 
than  be  treated  in  this  way.  If  our  love  were  a  little 
fashionable  gallantry,  well  and  good  ;  I  should  accom- 
modate myself  to  your  moods,  and  quarrel  with  you  almost 
every  day,  but  I  treat  our  affair  more  seriously,  and  there- 
fore I  cannot  possibly  submit  to  your  coldness.  Did  I  not 
beg  of  you,  for  God's  sake,  to  tell  me  what  ailed  you  ?  But 
I  could  get  nothing  from  you  except,  '  Leave  me  in  peace '. 
I  answered,  '  No,  I  will  know  at  any  cost '.  You  then  had 
the  courtesy  to  say,  '  Get  you  gone '.  I  went  at  once,  with 
a  firm  resolution  not  to  appear  before  you  again  unless  you 
positively  ordered  me.  That  is  why  I  have  not  seen  you 
this  evening." 

The  rest  of  the  letter  contains  requests  that  he  might 
know  how  he  stood  with  the  Princess,  so  that  he  might 
shape  his  course  accordingly.  He  was  beside  himself  with 
jealousy.  He  could  not  believe  that  she  had  any  com- 
passion for  her  husband,  and  persisted  in  looking  for  the 
cause  of  her  coldness  elsewhere.  Especially  he  resented 
her  attending  the  opera  and  taking  part  in  sledge-parties 
to  which  he  was  not  invited,  and  he  wrote  to  Knesebeck 
complaining  bitterly  of  the  Princess's  treatment. 

The  Princess  so  far  relented  as  to  receive  from  her  lover 
two  letters  expressing  grateful  delight  at  the  change  of  her 
conduct ;  but  his  delight  apparently  was  not  unalloyed. 
When  Prince  George  Louis  was  better,  the  Princess  left  to 
visit  the  Duke  and  Duchess  of  Celle  at  Wienhausen,1  another 
country  place  of  the  Duke's  a  short  distance  from  Celle. 
From  Wienhausen  she  went  to  Celle,  whither  Konigsmarck 
followed  her,  greatly  daring.  The  Duchess  of  Celle,  who 
now  learned  that  Konigsmarck  had  neither  married  nor 
gone  away,  and  things  were  apparently  much  as  before, 
again  remonstrated  with  her  daughter,  and  urged  her  to 
break  with  him  definitely.  The  Duchess  did  not  dream 
there  was  anything  more  than  a  passing  fancy,  a  little 
imprudence  ;  but  she  reminded  her  daughter  that  she  was 
surrounded  by  enemies  who  would  seize  on  any  pretext  to 
encompass  her  ruin.  The  Princess  saw  the  force  of  her 

1  Colt's  Despatch,  November  19,  1691. 


THE  DAWN  OF  PASSION  153 

mother's  reasoning.  She  had  not  yet  reached  that  point 
•of  passion  which  takes  no  count  of  consequences  ;  but 
Konigsmarck  had  reached  it,  and  compromise  seemed  im- 
possible. She  implored  her  lover  to  leave  her,  at  any  rate 
for  a  time.  Seeming  to  acquiesce,  he  wrote : — 

"  [CELLE,  undated.] 

"  I  see  nothing  but  ruin  before  my  eyes,  but  I  hope  to 
avert  it  by  a  glorious  death,  which  I  will  seek  all  over  the 
earth.  It  is  the  only  thing  to  pray  for  now  :  for  since  I 
may  not  live  with  you,  I  will  not  live  at  all.  I  am  very 
grateful  to  you  for  undeceiving  me  about  your  coolness. 
You  give  me  back  life  by  assuring  me  that  all  they  tell  you 
does  not  turn  you  against  me.  ...  I  have  had  a  letter 
from  a  friend  who  is  in  the  same  state  as  myself, — that  is 
why  he  is  going  to  the  Morea.1  If  Fortune  does  not  change, 
I  shall  go  on  that  expedition  with  .him,  and,  I  hope,  never 
return.  Perchance  you  may  be  kind  enough  to  have  a 
memorial  erected  for  me  ;  if  so,  do  not  forget  to  inscribe  on 
it  that  I  welcomed  death  with  joy,  because  I  was  forbidden 
to  look  into  your  beautiful  eyes.  Ah,  Madame !  how  you 
make  me  suffer  !  Are  these  the  delights  of  love  ? 

Amour  vois  les  mosque  tufais 
Aux  ou  les  biens  que  tus  promes 
Natus  pas  pitie  de  ma  peine  ?  2 

When  wilt  thou  have  pity  ?  When  shall  I  overcome  thy 
coldness?  Wilt  thou  ever  keep  from  me  the  rapture  of 
tasting  perfect  joy  ?  I  seek  it  in  thy  arms  ;  and  if  I  may 
not  taste  it  there,  I  care  for  naught  else.  No  !  if  I  may  not 
be  happy  with  you,  I  will  not  be  happy  at  all.  If  fortune 
were  to  destine  me  to  a  kingdom,  I  would  not  care  for  it 
without  you.  On  the  contrary,  if  I  desire  anything  for 
myself,  to  win  renown,  to  push  myself  to  great  estate,  it  is 
•only  for  the  love  of  you  and  in  the  hope  that  you  may 
love  me  more,  for  an  insignificant  lover  without  high  em- 
ployment cannot  hope  to  be  long  in  the  good  graces  of  a 
lady  of  your  rank.  If  God  spare  my  life,  I  vow  I  will 

1  Troops  were  being  sent  to  the  Morea  at  this  time,  and  Prince  Christian, 
son  of  the  Duke  of  Hanover,  wished  to  go  with  them.     He  did  not  go. — 
Vide  Colt's  despatches. 

2  This  is  a  literal  rendering  of  Konigsmarck's  French. 


154   THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

remain  a  constant  lover,  and  advance  in  dignity  and  honour. 
You  see,  Madame,  I  have  a  good  opinion  of  myself.  Know 
this  :  when  one  wishes  to  climb  for  the  love  of  the  lovely 
one,  one  succeeds  or  one  sinks  utterly  ;  it  will  be  one  or 
the  other  with  me.  My  resolve  to  leave  you  is  not  con- 
sistent with  such  tender  love,  I  admit ;  but  you  suffer  too- 
much  on  my  account.  I  should  be  the  cruellest  man  on 
earth  were  I  not  to  go  away,  and  so  give  you  a  little  relief 
from  the  persecution  you  are  suffering ;  for  when  my 
enemies  see  me  no  longer  happy,  they -will  cease  from 
tattling.  But  will  absence  injure  me  with  you?  Are  you 
a  woman  who  can  still  love  without  seeing  the  loved  one  ? 
Will  my  envious  enemies  succeed  in  their  infamous  designs  ? 
Will  you  forsake  me?" 

The  Princess  was  so  much  frightened  at  the  thought  that 
her  lover  was  going  on  another  perilous  campaign  in  the 
Morea,  where  he  had  narrowly  escaped  death  the  year 
before,  and  where  Prince  Charles  was  slain,  that  she  re- 
called her  words  and  wrote  begging  him  to  stay.  Konigs- 
marck  at  once  seized  the  advantage  he  had  gained  ;  he 
became  bolder  and  more  definite  in  his  demands.  For 
every  inch  the  Princess  yielded  he  took  an  ell.  He 
answered  : — 

"  You  know  only  too  well  that  I  should  not  go  away 
except  on  your  account,  and  since  you  ask  me  to  stay  I 
will  do  so  with  joy.  My  greatest  delight  is  to  pay  you  my 
court.  But,  Madame,  you  are  unjust  to  imagine  I  love  you 
no  longer.  Is  it  for  people  we  do  not  love  that  we  change 
our  moods  and  plans  ?  Is  it  because  I  do  not  love  you  I 
suffer  no  end  of  humiliation,  anxiety,  and  sorrow  ?  I  am 
not  so  unjust  as  you  ;  I  like  to  believe  that  you  love  me. 
There  are  many  men  who  would  not  believe  all  you  say 
took  place,  but  for  myself  I  set  such  store  on  everything; 
you  tell  me  that  I  believe  it  like  the  Gospel.  Rest  assured 
that  my  love  is  above  all  things.  I  see  you  in  so  tender 
a  mood  that  I  cannot  find  words  to  thank  you  enough, 
though  I  fear  you  are  willing  to  let  me  continue  in  misery,. 
even  though  you  no  longer  fear  your  parents'  preachments. 
You  are  too  charming,  my  divine  Princess.  I  am  so- 
touched  that  I  rule  myself  wholly  according  to  your  will. 


THE  DAWN  OF  PASSION  155 

I  would  leave  my  head  on  the  scaffold  rather  than  neglect 
anything  you  may  wish  me  to  do.  I  had  very  little  op- 
portunity of  speaking  to  you  yesterday,  yet  I  was  much 
relieved,  for  the  only  sign  I  received,  though  given  in  haste, 
reassured  me  so  much  that  I  slept  soundly.  It  is  the  first 
time  I  have  slept  since  I  came  to  Celle.  .  .  .  Commune 
with  your  heart :  if  it  be  true  to  me,  it  will  encourage  you 
to  do  something  bold.  Courage,  Madame  ;  see  me  for 
once — no  more — half  a  quarter  of  an  hour.  I  wish  to 
thank  you  on  my  knees  for  your  constancy.  It  is  the 
only  thing  I  ask  you.  But  do  not  risk  anything  for  me  ;  it 
might  spoil  all.  It  is  better  to  suffer  a  little  while  than 
always." 

That  his  prayer  was  granted  may  be  gathered  from 
the  following  :— 

"  The  moments  seem  to  me  centuries.  I  cannot  watch 
the  daylight  without  raging.  Why  do  not  the  hours  shut 
up  into  moments  ?  What  would  I  not  give  for  twelve 
o'clock  to  strike?  Be  sure  to  have  ready  de  feau  de  la 
reine  d'Hongrie,  for  fear  I  swoon  of  rapture.  What !  I 
shall  embrace  to-night  the  loveliest  of  women.  I  shall 
kiss  her  charming  mouth.  I  shall  worship  her  eyes,  those 
eyes  that  enslave  me.  I  shall  hear  from  her  very  lips  that 
she  loves  me.  I  shall  have  the  joy  of  embracing  her  knees  ; 
my  tears  will  chase  down  her  incomparable  cheeks.  I  shall 
hold  in  my  arms  the  most  beautiful  body  in  the  world. 
Verily,  Madame,  I  shall  die  of  joy.  But  so  long  as  I  have 
time  to  tell  thee  that  I  die  thy  slave,  I  care  for  naught 
beside." 


CHAPTER  XIII. 

CROSSING  THE  RUBICON. 

(1692.) 

Bist  du  mein  ? 
Hab'  ich  dich  vvieder  ? 
Darf  ich  dich  fassen  ? 
Kann  ich  mir  trauen  ? 
Endlich !     Endlich ! 

Art  thou  mine  ? 
Do  I  behold  thee  ? 
Do  I  embrace  thee  ? 
Can  I  believe  it  ? 
At  last !     At  last ! 

Tristan  und  Isolde. 

WHILE  the  Princess  was  still  at  Celle  an  event  happened 
at  Hanover  which  created  much  excitement  Colt  writes: 
"  The  gates  have  been  shut  for  two  days  at  Hanover,  ac- 
companied with  a  great  consternation.  Yet  first  the  two 
Moltkes  were  brought  to  court  under  a  guard,  where  they 
are  kept  close,  and  all  their  papers  taken.  One  is  Jager- 
master,1  and  hath  been  employed  in  the  business  with  the 
Duke  of  Saxe-Gotha  ;  and  the  other  was  Lieutenant-Colonel, 
and  had  waited  upon  the  Prince  Max  ;  and  there  is  also 
secured  a  secretary  to  the  Duke  of  Wolfenbiittel,  who 
formerly  served  Prince  Augustus,  the  Duke's  second  son, 
who  was  killed  in  Transylvania.  And  next  day  Prince 
Max  was  secured  under  guard  in  his  chamber,  none  of  his 
servants  being  suffered  to  come  near  him  ;  but  the  Duchess, 
who  is  under  great  affliction,  and  the  Duke  say'd  publicly 
that  there  were  designs  against  his  person  and  Government, 
and  many  storeys  are  dispersed  about."  - 

The   story   circulated    by   authority   was    that    Count 
Moltke,  who  was  in  waiting  on  the  Duke,  had  presented 

1  Grand  Master  of  the  Hunt. 

2  Colt's  Despatch,  Celle,  December  8,  1691. 

156 


CROSSING  THE  RUBICON  157 

a  snuff-box  to  His  Highness  when  he  was  playing  at 
quadrille.  The  Duke,  suspecting  something  wrong,  asked 
the  Count  to  take  his  cards  for  a  moment,  and  going  into 
the  adjoining  room  gave  a  pinch  of  the  snuff  to  a  pet 
spaniel,  with  the  result  that  the  dog  immediately  fell  dead. 
When  he  had  given  some  hurried  orders,  the  Duke  re- 
turned to  the  card-table,  and  presently  told  Count  Moltke 
that  some  one  was  waiting  for  him  without.  When  the 
Count  went  out  of  the  room,  he  found  himself  a  prisoner, 
and  his  arrest  was  followed  by  that  of  his  brother,  the 
W7olfenbiittel  secretary,  and  Prince  Maximilian. 

This  was  the  rumour  industriously  spread  abroad  ;  but 
it  was  not  correct.  Moltke  had  made  no  attempt  against 
the  life  of  his  sovereign  ;  but  he  had  undoubtedly  plotted 
against  his  authority.  The  old  question  of  the  union  of 
the  Dukedoms  of  Celle  and  Hanover,  and  the  settling  of 
all  territory  on  Prince  George  Louis  to  the  exclusion  of 
his  younger  brothers,  had  cropped  up  again.  This  was 
the  Duke  of  Hanover's  darling  scheme,  a  necessary  step 
towards  the  coveted  electorate,  and  he  would  allow  nothing 
to  come  between  him  and  his  ambition.  The  younger 
princes  stoutly  opposed  it  and  rebelled.  The  Duke  of 
Wolfenbuttel  secretly  abetted  them,  because  primogeni- 
ture would  add  largely  to  the  future  aggrandisement  of 
Hanover  ;  and  even  the  Duchess  Sophia  regarded  the  plan 
with  dislike,  as  it  pressed  so  hardly  on  her  younger  sons. 
Prince  Augustus  being  dead,  it  now  fell  on  Prince  Max, 
the  third  son,  to  rebel,  and  Count  Moltke  and  his  brother 
aided  and  abetted  him.  The  Wolfenbuttel  secretary  was 
also  implicated  ;  the  plot  was  almost  ripe,  and  a  rising  was 
planned,  when  the  conspirators  were  betrayed  by  a  double 
traitor,  who  had  wormed  himself  into  their  confidence  by 
pretending  to  be  their  friend.  An  outbreak  of  the  populace 
was  feared,  for  the  people's  sympathies  were  with  the  young 
princes  in  their  resistance  to  this  innovation,  and  Prince 
George  Louis  was  unpopular. 

The  Duke  of  Hanover's  resentment  was  very  great, 
especially  against  his  cousins  of  Wolfenbuttel,  with  whom 
all  relations  were  abruptly  broken  off.  Prince  Max  con- 
tinuing mutinous,  and,  vowing  he  would  never  submit,  was 
kept  a  closer  prisoner  than  ever ;  his  guards  were  doubled 
and  his  mother  forbidden  to  go  near  him.  Indeed,  she 


158    THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

herself  was  suspected  and  examined  before  the  council. 
It  has  been  said  that  the  Princess  Sophie  Dorothea  was 
implicated  too,  and  Moltke  was  offered  his  liberty  if  he 
would  confess  her  share  in  the  business,  but  he  refused  and 
denied.  The  suggestion  was  probably  made  at  the  instiga- 
tion of  the  Countess  Platen,  who  would  start  any  lie  against 
the  Princess.  There  is  no  authority  for  the  statement ; 
Colt  in  his  long  account  of  the  affair  does  not  even  mention 
the  Princess's  name.  She  was  at  Celle  at  the  time  the  plot 
was  discovered,  and  both  the  Duke  and  Duchess  of  Celle 
were  in  favour  of  the  ultimate  settlement  by  primogeniture 
•of  the  dukedoms  on  Prince  George  Louis,  seeing  that  he 
had  wedded  their  daughter,  and  the  children  were  their 
•only  descendants. 

The  Princess  and  her  children  came  back  to  Hanover 
with  her  parents  early  in  January  for  the  carnival.  "  The 
court  of  Celle  arrived  here  last  night,"  writes  Colt,  "  and 
were  received  with  extra  kindness,  much  different  to  what 
I  have  seen  since  I  have  been  in  these  parts,  and  they  seem 
to  bind  all  their  thoughts  to  secure  the  union  of  these  two 
dukedoms."  l  And  again  :  "  The  court  of  Celle  will  con- 
tinue here  for  some  time,  and  the  Duke  and  Duchess  of 
Celle  shew  an  extraordinary  fondness  for  their  daughter 
and  grandchildren  ".2 

By  this  time  Prince  Max  had  been  sent  away  as  a 
prisoner  to  the  castle  of  Hamelin,  and  after  a  good  deal  of 
blustering  had  promised  to  submit  to  paternal  authority 
under  certain  conditions.  Further  inquiries  revealed  that 
the  plot  was  an  old  one  and  had  many  branches.  Duke 
Antony  Ulrich  had  been  the  moving  power,  and  both  the 
•dead  princes,  Augustus  and  Charles,  were  inculpated. 
The  feeling  at  the  Hanoverian  court  ran  strongly  against 
Duke  Antony  Ulrich,  and  even  the  Duchess  Sophia  found 
herself  exposed  to  resentment,  though  nothing  could  be 
proved  against  her,  popr  lady,  beyond  that,  having  a 
mother's  heart,  she  had  helped  her  unruly  sons  now  and 
then  out  of  her  slender  pin  money  (not  that  she  had  much 
to  give— Countess  Platen  saw  to  that)  when  their  father 
had  cast  them  out  with  the  proverbial  shilling.  It  must 
have  been  a  sore  time  for  the  proud,  high-spirited  Duchess. 

1  Colt's  Despatch,  Hanover,  January  5,  1692. 

2  Ibid.,  January  8,  1692. 


CROSSING  THE  RUBICON  159 

To  add  a  drop  more  of  bitterness  to  her  cup,  the  Duchess 
of  Celle  was  now  at  Hanover,  a  witness  of  the  humiliation 
of  her  rival,  and  herself  flattered  and  courted.  It  may  be 
doubted  if  Eleonore  had  sufficient  magnanimity  not  to 
vaunt  her  triumph ;  yet  she  would  have  done  well  to  be 
humble  in  the  days  of  her  prosperity,  for  even  at  this,  its 
apogee,  there  was  a  far  more  dangerous  intrigue  than  any 
Prince  Max  was  involved  in,  secretly  but  surely  under- 
mining her  future  happiness,  and  threatening  to  bring 
disaster  on  her  cherished  schemes,  and  ruin  and  dishonour 
on  all  most  dear  to  her. 

But  whatever  misery  and  wretchedness  lay  behind  the 
scenes,  externally  the  court  of  Hanover  was  as  gay  and 
brilliant  as  ever.  The  New  Year  opened  as  usual  with  the 
carnival,  an  Italian  opera,  and  a  series  of  festivities,  in  which 
all  took  part,  from  the  court  down  to  the  common  people. 
The  taverns  were  thronged  with  mummers  and  masquer- 
aders,  the  streets  of  the  old  town  were  bright  with  booths 
and  bunting,  and  a  large  concourse  of  merrymakers  flocked 
to  Hanover  from  the  surrounding  towns  and  villages.  The 
nobility  came  from  their  country  estates,  and  many  of  the 
neighbouring  princes  and  princesses  came  for  the  carnival 
too.  In  all  these  festivities  Sophie  Dorothea  was  the  cen- 
tral figure.  Every  one  paid  court  to  the  beautiful  young 
Princess  of  Hanover,  who,  high  in  the  favour  of  her  parents 
and  the  Duke  of  Hanover,  triumphed  for  the  moment  over 
her  enemies  and  seemed  to  gather  up  in  herself  and  her 
children  all  the  brilliant  hopes  of  the  House  of  Brunswick- 
Liineburg. 

The  children  formed  the  strong  link  of  the  alliance  be- 
tween Celle  and  Hanover.  Even  the  Duchess  of  Celle  had 
come  to  see  that,  however  much  in  her  heart  she  might 
dislike  the  Duchess  Sophia  and  the  Hanoverian  influence, 
henceforth  their  interests  were  to  a  great  extent  identical. 
The  young  Prince  George  Augustus  was  now  nine,  the 
little  Princess  Sophie  Dorothea  five ;  they  were  her  grand- 
children and  the  representatives  of  the  fast  accumulating 
dignities  of  the  House.  The  future  union  of  the  dukedoms 
was  settled,  the  electorate  of  Hanover  was  almost  assured, 
the  crown  of  England,  now  that  William  and  Mary  had 
ascended  the  throne,  no  longer  a  mere  mirage.  Who 
could  tell  to  what  brilliant  future  these  children  might 


160   THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

not  be  destined  ?  Her  descendants — the  descendants  of 
the  hated  and  despised  Eleonore — the  "  Frenchwoman," 
the  canaille,  the  "  Signora,"  the  "  little  clot  of  dirt  "- 
might  live  to  ascend  the  mightiest  thrones  of  Europe.1 
These  considerations  might  well  make  Duchess  Eleonore 
pause,  and  make  her  watch  closely  the  conduct  of  her 
daughter,  lest  by  folly  or  indiscretion  she  might  blight  her 
career  and  injure  the  prospects  of  her  children.  She  again 
spoke  to  the  Princess  and  urged  her  to  avoid  Konigsmarck. 
The  Princess-Dowager  of  East  Friesland,  who,  with  her 
daughter-in-law,  had  come  to  Hanover  (ostensibly  for  the 
carnival,  in  reality  to  try  to  smooth  things  down  between 
the  Dukes  of  Hanover  and  Wolfenbuttel),  also  repeated 
certain  rumours  she  had  heard  to  the  Duchess  of  Celle, 
who  in  turn  communicated  them  to  her  daughter.  The 
Princess  was  frightened,  and  directed  Knesebeck  to  tell 
Konigsmarck  of  what  had  passed,  and  to  impress  on  him  the 
need  of  greater  caution  in  the  future.  Konigsmarck  wrote  : — 

"[HANOVER,  February.] 

"  I  am  extremely  surprised  to  learn  from  La  Confidente 
all  that  has  happened.  As  I  had  heard  nothing  from  you, 
I  was  in  despair  ;  but  when  your  letter  came  it  was  so- 
loving  that  I  will  not  hint  at  what  I  feared  most.  I  again 
picked  up  a  little  courage.  What  worries  me  most  is  that 
your  mother  has  been  preaching  at  you  ;  for  though  she 
may  be  on  your  side  she  is  sure  to  watch  you  closely,  and 
when  she  learns  that  you  have  been  talking  to  me  she  will 
become  more  suspicious,  and  I  fear  will  tell  everything  to- 
the  Duke.  Try  to  prevent  that,  or  we  are  lost  for  ever. 
I  am  grieved  to  be  the  cause  of  all  this  trouble.  But  you 
are  so  sweet  and  charming,  it  is  not  my  fault  ;  you  must 
blame  yourself  for  having  made  in  me  such  an  unlucky 
choice.  It  is  cruel  to  think  that  while  everybody  can 
make  love  to  you,  and  you  can  speak  to  whom  you  will 
without  any  fault-finding,  I  am  the  only  one  excluded. 
When  I  think  how  your  mother  encourages  Monsieur 
Welling,2  on  the  one  hand,  and  on  the  other  forbids  me 

1  As,  in  point  of  fact,  they  did,  George  Augustus  as  George  II.  of  Great 
Britain;  Sophie  Dorothea  as  Queen  of  Prussia,  and  mother  of  Frederick  the 
Great. 

2  "Baron  Welling  is  come  hither  to  prepare  matters." — Colt's  Despatch,. 
Hanover,  January,  1692. 


CROSSING  THE  RUBICON  161 

to  speak  to  you,  I  am  so  enraged  that  I  could  stab  her.  and  I 
wish  her  a  thousand  times  a  day  to  the  devil.  If  the  earth 
were  to  open  and  swallow  up  her  and  the  Dowager,1  how 
glad  I  should  be  !  I  believe  all  the  fiends  plot  together  to 
annoy  me,  but  they  will  not  succeed  if  only  you  remain 
faithful.  I  can  patiently  endure  all  things  so  long  as  you 
do  not  change,  but  I  fear  they  will  terrify  you  so  that  in 
the  end  they  will  succeed  in  their  diabolical  plans.  How  I 
hate  them  !  Were  I  lord  of  the  thunderbolts  there  would 
be  many  grey  heads  battered  about ;  but  as  I  am  not,  I 
can  only  implore  you  to  hate  all  those  who  are  working 
against  me,  and  urging  you  to  forget  me.  You  will  not 
refuse  this  prayer  if  you  have  any  love  left  for  me.  If  you 
wish,  I  will  go  away  to  some  village  near,  for  I  cannot  veil 
my  eyes  so  that  the  world  does  not  see  my  adoration  ;  but 
if  you  will  suffer  me  even  to  look  at  you,  you  will  give  me 
joy, — without  that  I  cannot  stay.  Be  merciful  and  write  to 
me.  Forget  not  to  assure  me  of  your  love,  for  now  is  the 
time ;  if  your  heart  begins  to  cool,  the  plotters  will  succeed 
in  their  infamous  designs. 

"  Now  as  to  reproaches.  You  might  have  spoken  to  me 
coming  out  of  the  Princess's2  door,  for  your  father  had 
already  retired,  and  there  would  have  been  no  danger  on 
account  of  the  Prince.  But  terror  prevented  you ;  I  know 
you  so  well.  I  have  everything  to  fear ;  every  one  plots 
against  me,  men  and  demons,  and  even  old  women,  who 
are  worse  than  demons." 

The  Princess  was  torn  by  conflicting  emotions — her  in- 
fatuation on  the  one  hand,  and  her  dread  of  discovery  on 
the  other.  She  had  not  yet  capitulated  wholly  ;  but  under 
the  impetuous  assaults  of  her  lover  the  outworks  were  falling 
one  by  one,  the  citadel  would  soon  be  stormed.  While  she 
was  hesitating,  the  carnival  broke  up,  and  Sophie  Dorothea 
returned  with  her  parents  to  Celle.  The  Duchess  Sophia 
seems  to  have  gone  too.3 

The  Duke  of  Hanover  had  an  object  in  sending  "  all  the 

1  The  Princess-Dowager  of  East  Friesland.     "  The  two  Princesses  of 
East    Frise    [Friesland]    arrived   yesterday." — Colt's    Despatch,    Hanover, 
February  9,   1692. 

2  The  Princess  of  East  Friesland. 

*"The  Duke  of  Hanover  hath  sent  all  the  women  hither." — Colt's 
Despatch,  Celle,  February  23,  1692. 

1 1 


162   THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

women  "  out  of  the  way,  for  he  wished  to  try  his  prisoners 
and  bring  Prince  Max  to  his  knees — things  he  could  do 
better  when  freed  from  feminine  influence.  He  soon  suc- 
ceeded, for  Max  renounced  his  claims,  and  the  prisoners  were 
found  guilty  and  sent  back  to  their  prison  to  wait  sentence. 
The  Duke  of  Hanover  then  went  to  join  his  brother  at 
Celle,  where  much  company  was  assembled,  including  the 
Duke  and  Duchess  of  Saxe-Eisenach.  Konigsmarck  was 
there  too,  perhaps  in  the  suite  of  the  Duke  of  Hanover, 
possibly  on  a  visit  to  his  brother-in-law,  Count  Lewenhaupt, 
to  whom  the  Duke  of  Celle  had  recently  given  the  command 
of  a  regiment  of  Foot.1 

Konigsmarck  was,  of  course,  invited  to  all  the  court 
festivities  at  Celle,  and  had  many  opportunities  of  meeting 
the  Princess.  But  she  was  on  her  guard  in  public,  so  much 
so  that  the  Duchess  of  Celle  could  detect  nothing  definite, 
though  she  seems  to  have  sounded  Konigsmarck,  if  we  may 
judge  from  his  next  letter  to  the  Princess.  In  this  letter 
appears  the  first  hint  of  an  idea  which  gradually  matured 
in  the  Princess's  mind  side  by  side  with  the  growth  of  her 
passion — namely,  that  she  and  her  lover  should  escape  by 
flight  from  a  situation  intolerable  to  both. 

"  [CELLE,  March.] 

"  La  Confidente  will  tell  you  that  I  was  more  than 
satisfied  yesterday,  though  I  had  no  other  delight  than 
pressing  your  hand.  Our  restraint  has  its  charms,  for 
though  the  last  few  days  I  have  seen  you  only  in  places 
where  even  the  language  of  the  eyes  is  scarcely  possible,  I 
have  had  many  happy  moments.  What  a  delight  ma 
petite,  for  us  to  be  able  to  communicate  with  impunity  in 
the  presence  of  thousands  of  people !  What  a  delight ! 
Speak  to  me  a  little  more  in  the  same  way,  but  only  when 
there  is  no  risk,  for  I  should  be  sore  distressed  to  cause  you 
more  trouble  than  I  do  already.  .  .  .  Keep  in  the  same 
mind  as  you  were  yesterday,  and  though  the  whole  world 
conspire  against  us,  never  mind  so  long  as  we  love  one 
another.  They  will  soon  tire  of  preaching  at  you,  and 
then  we  shall  enjoy  perfect  peace.  I  have  not  yet  seen 

1 "  The  Duke  of  Celle  hath  at  last  given  the  new-raised  regiment  of  Foot 
to  the  Count  Lewenhaupt,  a  Swede,  brother-in-law  to  Count  Konigsmarck, 
who  commands  a  regiment  of  Hanover." — Colt's  Despatch,  January  22,  1692. 


CROSSING  THE  RUBICON  163 

Aurora,  but  I  shall  know  all  from  her.  I  have  had  a  long 
conversation  with  the  Duchess  of  Celle.  I  believe  her  to 
be  the  most  deceitful  of  women.  She  says  the  prettiest 
things  to  me,  yet  all  the  time  she  is  doing  her  best  to  ruin 
me  with  you.  I  hope  to  Heaven  she  will  not  succeed ! 
Do  not  believe  all  these  women  may  tell  you,  for  they  will 
make  every  effort  to  set  you  against  me.  But  I  should  be 
wrong  to  doubt  you  after  the  proposition  you  made  to  me — 
that  you  are  willing  to  leave  all  this  pomp  and  splendour  and 
retire  with  me  to  some  corner  of  the  world.  After  that  I 
have  nothing  to  fear.  I  accept  your  offer  with  joy.  You 
have  only  to  say  the  word  and  I  am  ready.  If  the  result 
of  your  parents'  persecution  be  to  force  you  to  take  such  a 
step,  I  hope  they  will  persecute  you  a  hundred  times  more, 
so  that  you  may  act  promptly.  Why  should  we  not  fly 
to-night  ? 

"  Surely,  Madame,  my  manner  towards  the  Duchess  of 
Saxe-Eisenach 1  must  have  shown  you  that  my  heart  is  all 
yours,  and  no  other  beauty  can  find  place  there,  not  even 
that  princess.  I  hope  you  have  no  cause  to  complain  of 
my  behaviour  to  the  other  ladies  here.  It  is  true  I  flattered 
His  Highness's  mistress,2  in  the  hope  she  would  tell  me 
what  she  was  about,  and  she  would  not  say  anything.  I 
stand  well  with  Monseigneur,3  and  he  shows  me  more 
courtesy  than  usual." 

The  Princess,  during  the  next  few  days  at  Celle,  seems 
to  have  behaved  with  more  circumspection.  In  this  she 
was  only  obeying  the  dictates  of  common  prudence.  Never- 
theless her  precautions  called  forth  the  following  remon- 
strances : — 

"  I  imagined  that  in  possessing  your  love  I  should  be 
the  happiest  man  in  the  world.  I  little  thought  I  should 
have  so  few  opportunities  of  speaking  to  you.  I  tell  you 
frankly  this  continual  restraint  falls  far  short  of  perfect 
felicity,  and  my  happiness  will  never  be  complete  until  I 
enter  upon  it  wholly.  Believe  me,  this  is  true.  I  was 
speaking  to  La  Confidente  about  it  last  night ;  she  will  tell 

1  "  The  Duke  and  Duchess  of  Saxe-Eisenach  are  come  hither." — Colt's 
Despatch,  Celle,  March  4,  1692. 

2 Countess  Platen.  3  Duke  of  Celle. 

II  * 


164   THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

you  my  wishes  anon.  I  have  to  talk  to  you  just  like  every 
one  else,  and  precautions  have  to  be  taken,  though  they 
wound  and  vex  us.  Let  us  hope  for  better  times,  for  until 
then  we  are  doomed  to  suffer.  Meanwhile  forget  nothing 
that  will  give  me  comfort,  and  assure  me  of  your  tender 
love  ;  you  cannot  do  this  better  than  in  letting  me  see  you 
as  often  as  possible.  Did  you  really  notice  how  the  Duchess 
of  Saxe- Eisenach  attacked  me  ?  I  hope  when  I  have 
answered  her  two  or  three  times  as  curtly  as  possible,  she 
will  clearly  understand  that  I  want  no  intercourse  with  her." 

"  Your  kind  note  assures  me  of  your  tender  love  and 
assurances  must  suffice  for  the  present.  But,  Madame,  I 
am  not  the  man  to  let  myself  be  made  sport  of,  and  if  your 
promises  do  not  agree  with  your  conduct  they  will  not  make 
the  slightest  impression  on  me.  You  have  not  treated  me 
very  well  the  last  two  days,  and  I  cannot  quite  believe  your 
notes  ;  but  if  you  change  your  manners,  I  am  quite  ready 
to  accept  your  protestations.  I  am  forced  to  assume  an 
extremely  distant  manner  towards  you,  and  it  makes  me 
furious  ;  I  wish  you  could  alter  it,  but  you  cannot.  Pardon 
me  once  more.  It  is  my  hot  temper — I  know  it,  but  you 
are  the  cause." 

Konigsmarck's  "  hot  temper  "  seems  to  have  led  him  into 
a  breach  of  good  manners,  for  later  we  find  him  writing  : — 

"  If  you  could  see  my  despair  you  would  forgive  me  the 
fault  I  have  just  committed.  I  was  piqued  and  annoyed 
because  you  would  not  deign  to  look  at  me  once  during  the 
play,  though  I  sat  immediately  opposite.  I  do  not  deserve 
your  haughty  airs  ;  the  sacrifice  I  have  made  for  you  of  the 
Duchess  of  Saxe- Eisenach l  at  least  deserved  a  glance.  You 
can  see  for  yourself  that  I  hardly  look  at  her,  and  when  she 
speaks  to  me  I  answer  her  very  briefly,  so  as  to  cut  short 
any  further  conversation.  Her  lady-in-waiting  says  that 
the  Duchess  finds  me  much  changed.  But  a  truce  to  all 
that ;  it  is  not  worth  speaking  about.  Give  me  pardon, 
Princess,  I  implore  you,  and  arrange  for  me  to  see  you 

1 "  The  courts  of  Hanover  and  Saxe-Eisenach  go  from  hence  after  to- 
morrow;  there  has  been  much  company  here  for  several  days." — Colt's 
Despatch,  Celle,  March  8,  1692. 


CROSSING  THE  RUBICON  165 

to-morrow.  I  could  hardly  get  a  glimpse  of  you,  for  the 
dancing  made  me  very  hot,  and,  as  I  was  unable  to  change 
my  linen,  I  did  not  like  to  come  near  you.  This  is  a  poor 
excuse,  and  I  can  only  throw  myself  upon  your  mercy. 
La  Confidente  will  intercede  for  me.  I  hovered  outside 
your  apartments  for  half  an  hour  to  see  if  La  Confidente 
were  coming  out.  I  wanted  to  knock  at  your  back  door, 
but  I  dared  not.  What  torment  for  me  to  miss  the  society 
of  my  adored  one !  What  a  night  I  shall  spend  !  Grand 
Dieu  !  what  was  I  thinking  about  ?  What  demon  possessed 
me?  If  you  will  not  forgive  me  you  will  drive  me  to 
despair.  I  shall  go  away  at  once  and  weep  over  my  sins 
in  the  regiment,  so  let  me  know  my  fate.  Farewell,  my 
dearest  one.  Shall  I  dare  to  call  you  so  again  ?  Verily  I 
do  not  deserve  that  privilege.  I  am  in  torment.  When 
will  you  send  me  an  answer?  For  the  love  of  Heaven,  let 
me  have  one  soon." 

The  Princess  forgave  him,  probably  on  the  morrow,  and 
how  fully  may  be  gathered  from  the  following  rapturous 
epistle  : — 

"  I  slept  like  a  king,  and  I  hope  you  did  the  same. 
What  joy  1  what  rapture !  what  enchantment  have  I  not 
tasted  in  your  sweet  arms !  Ye  gods !  what  a  night  I 
spent  !  The  memory  of  it  blots  out  all  my  troubles,  and 
for  the  moment  I  count  myself  the  happiest  man  on  earth. 
You  see,  it  rests  wholly  with  you  to  make  me  happy,  and 
when  I  am  sad  you  are  the  cause.  Adieu,  dear  heart.  How 
long  the  day  will  seem  to  me  without  seeing  you  !  Adieu." 

And  he  wrote  later  the  same  day  : — 

"  Verily  I  am  overwhelmed  by  the  tokens  of  love  you 
have  vouchsafed  to  me.  I  shall  never  be  able  to  show  you 
my  gratitude,  but  shall  always  be  your  debtor.  I  love  and 
I  am  loved.  Is  there  any  bliss  approaching  mine  ?  I  count 
myself  the  happiest  of  mortals,  and  even  of  the  gods.  Ah  ! 
most  beautiful  one !  The  tenderness  you  have  shown  me 
compels  me  to  love  you,  and  makes  me  despise  the  favours 
of  good  and  the  caprices  of  bad  fortune.  Time  will  bring  no 
change  in  my  love.  I  would  abandon  for  you  all  ties — 


i66   THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

family,  relations,  women,  even  wife  and  children  had  I  any. 
My  passion  intoxicates  me.  I  can  no  longer  think — words 
fail.  1  commit  myself  to  your  keeping ;  do  with  me  as 
you  will.  I  can  scarcely  keep  my  heart  within  bounds  ;  it 
strives  perpetually  to  burst  away  and  thank  you  for  its 
captivity,  for  it  loves  to  be  the  slave  of  one  who  treats  it 
so  generously.  I  fear  I  shall  lose  it  altogether,  but  as  I 
cannot  live  without  a  heart,  for  pity's  sake,  Madame,  give 
me  yours  in  return,  for  without  one  or  the  other  I  shall  die. 
Do  not  put  off  my  seeing  you  this  evening,  I  beseech  you. 
You  have  convinced  me  so  deeply  that  you  love  me,  that 
I  have  never  loved  you  so  much  before.  You  have  never 
appeared  to  me  so  altogether  lovely.  With  crossed  hands 
and  bended  knees  I  thank  you  for  all  you  have  vouchsafed 
unto  me.  Suffer  me  therefore  to  see  you  again  to-day,  and 
do  not  put  me  off.  I  should  die. 

"  The  Prince  went  away  to-day  at  eight  o'clock.  He 
is  angry  because  you  wished  to  remain  with  your  mother. 
All  goes  wonderfully  well.  Farewell." 

On  the  return  of  the  court  to  Hanover,  Duke  Ernest 
Augustus  concentrated  his  energies  on  obtaining  the  long- 
deferred  electorate,  and  he  made  the  electoral  bonnet  a 
positive  condition  to  his  rejoining  the  Allies.  William  of 
Orange  was  already  at  the  Hague,  busily  making  arrange- 
ments for  the  forthcoming  campaign  of  1692.  He  found 
that  Denmark  and  Sweden  threatened  to  become  actively 
hostile.  Brandenburg  was  sullen,  and  Saxony  disaffected. 
He  could  therefore  ill  afford  to  lose  the  services  of  the 
Duke  of  Hanover,  and  had  again  to  promise  him  his  sup- 
port and  influence  with  the  Emperor  for  the  Electorate. 
But  Ernest  Augustus  wanted  something  more  than  pro- 
mises. "  This  Duke,"  writes  Colt,  "  is  certainly  resolved 
to  make  all  things  as  sure  as  he  can  with  the  Emperor 
before  he  lets  his  troops  stir  out  of  the  country." l  The 
Duke  of  Celle,  who  was  warmly  on  the  side  of  the  Allies, 
generously  waived  his  claim  as  elder  brother  to  the  elector- 
ate, seeing  that  his  younger  brother  could  be  gained  on  no 
other  terms.  But  still  the  Emperor  hesitated.  He  knew 
that  the  French  agent  was  at  Hanover,  and  intrigues  were 

1  Colt's  Despatch,  Hanover,  April  15,  1692. 


CROSSING  THE  RUBICON  167 

on  foot  with  Denmark  and  Sweden,  and  he  stipulated  that 
the  Duke  should  first  declare  against  France.  As  neither 
side  trusted  the  other,  negotiations  did  not  advance  very 
quickly. 

In  the  meantime  Konigsmarck  went  on  one  of  his 
frequent  journeys  to  Hamburg,  ostensibly  to  visit  his  estate 
hard  by,  probably  to  combine  pleasure  with  his  business. 
Hamburg  was  then  a  strongly  fortified  town  much  fre- 
quented by  the  princes  of  northern  Germany.  Some  ten 
years  previously  the  first  theatre  in  Germany  for  operas 
was  opened  at  Hamburg,  and  this  helped  to  make  it  a 
favourite  resort  of  the  gay  world.  Just  at  this  time  it 
gained  a  special  importance,  as  it  was  the  meeting-place 
of  many  of  the  representatives  of  the  great  Alliance,  in- 
cluding several  German  princes  and  the  disaffected  northern 
Powers  who  came  thither  to  intrigue  concerning  the  coming 
campaign.  Konigsmarck's  visit  might  possibly  have  had 
something  of  a  diplomatic  nature,  but  no  hint  of  this  appears 
in  his  letters.  His  relations  with  the  Princess  had  continued 
in  unbroken  harmony,  if  we  may  judge  from  the  little  note 
he  sent  her  on  the  eve  of  his  leaving  : — 

"[HANOVER,  undated.] 

"  I  should  deem  myself  all  unworthy  of  your  love 
were  1  to  go  away  without  assuring  you  how  deeply  I  am 
sensible  of  your  kindness.  Yes,  beautiful  mouth,  you  love 
me,  I  doubt  no  longer,  and  my  bliss  is  perfect.  I  start  with 
that  belief  only.  .  .  .  The  letter  inclosed  from  Hamburg 
will  show  how  things  are  going  with  my  sister.  I  will 
write  you  more  fully.  I  kiss  your  hands.  I  am  all 
yours." 

The  ensuing  letters  which  he  wrote  to  the  Princess  when 
on  this  journey  explain  themselves  : — 

"  HAMBURG,  March  22. 

"  I  have  reached  here  at  last,  after  great  trouble  and 
danger,  for  about  a  league  from  Hanover  my  carriage  broke 
down,  and  in  crossing  the  Elbe  I  thought  I  should  have  been 
drowned.  My  servants  had  taken  lodgings  at  the  inn  to 
which  I  usually  come,  and  to  crown  all,  I  found  that  the 


1 68   THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

Princess  d'Otfrise  l  and  the  Duchess  of  Saxe-Eisenach  were 
lodged  there.  I  was  greatly  puzzled  what  to  do,  for  they 
sent  word  for  me  to  come  and  dine  with  them  ;  but,  my 
dear  little  heart,  I  remembered  my  promise  to  you,  and 
determined  to  decamp.  So  I  pretended  that  I  had  pressing 
and  urgent  business  which  compelled  me  to  leave  at  once, 
and,  without  seeing  them,  I  marched  off  and  changed  my 
quarters.  But  I  did  not  leave  the  town,  for  I  found  my 
brother-in-law  and  sister2  here.  I  gave  my  sister  an  exact 
account  of  all  that  had  taken  place  since  she  left,  and  she 
did  the  same  to  me.  .  .  . 

"  To  come  to  my  story,  they  say  I  named  you  personally.3 
You  know  the  rest.  I  need  not  justify  mysejf  to  you  ;  you 
know  me  too  well.  I  am  now  trying  to  find  the  author 
of  this  underhand  business.  Should  I  unearth  him,  I  will 
avenge  myself  in  a  way  that  will  make  others  careful  not  to 
invent  any  more  lies.  My  brother-in-law  also  has  a  little 
matter  to  settle.  Some  one  said  in  his  cups  :  '  O,  truly, 
when  one  has  a  sister-in-law  who  sleeps  with  a  prince 
one  can  soon  have  regiments  '.4  They  say  that  the  author 
of  this  story  is  Lieutenant-Colonel  Grot,  or  little  Count 
Steinbock.  We  shall  demand  an  explanation  sword  in 
hand,  and  see  what  they  will  say.  I  leave  to-morrow  for 
my  estate.  Farewell." 

"  En  Route. 

"  On  dismounting  here  they  gave  me  three  of  your  letters. 
Picture  my  joy  !  I  had  begun  to  think  that  you  had  quite 
forgotten  me.  M.  de  Bielke  has  begged  me  to  come  to 
supper  with  him,  but  as  some  ladies  with  whom  I  used  to 
flirt  will  be  there,  I  am  not  going,  for  I  want  to  have  the 
satisfaction  of  swearing  to  you  that  all  the  time  I  am  away 
I  have  not  said  sweet  things  to  any  woman  whatsoever.  .  .  . 
Do  not  write  to  me  any  more.  Two  of  your  letters  have 
been  sealed  with  another  seal,  and  that  makes  me  fear.  I 
will  show  them  to  you." 

1  East  Friesland.     Colt  sometimes  calls  her  "  Otfrise  "  too. 

8  Count  and  Countess  Lewenhaupt. 

•It  is  worthy  of  note  that  the  same  charge,  boasting  when  he  was  in  his 
cups,  of  his  intimacy  with  the  Princess  was  made  against  Konigsmarck  two 
years  later  (1694)  at  the  court  of  Dresden. 

4  This  refers  to  Aurora  von  Konigsmarck  and  the  recent  appointment  of 
Count  Lewenhaupt  to  a  regiment  of  Celle. 


CROSSING  THE  RUBICON  169 

"Monday  evening  at  REINBEK.' 

"  As  I  again  catch  the  post  here  I  cannot  let  it  go  with- 
out writing,  and  I  think  this  letter  will  reach  you  sooner 
than  the  one  I  sent  this  morning  by  my  servant.  Let  us 
unite  against  those  who  would  break  us  asunder ;  they  will 
tire  when  they  see  our  constancy.  It  is  distraction  to  have 
no  news  from  you  and  to  be  unable  to  hold  you  in  my  arms. 
I  must  arm  myself  with  patience,  little  by  little,  for  I  am 
sore  afraid  that  this  summer  I  shall  have  to  exercise  myself 
.greatly  in  that  virtue.  The  postillion  is  on  horseback.  If 
I  could  be  in  his  place  I  could  see  you  by  dinner-time,  but 
as  it  is  I  cannot  until  after  to-morrow.  I  am  raging  that 
old  Time  should  lag  so  much.  I  spend  every  evening  in 
miserable  inns.  Since  I  left  Hanover  I  have  only  slept  on 
straw ;  but  (think  of  my  impertinence !),  uncomfortable 
though  I  was,  every  moment  I  wished  you  with  me,  without 
thinking  that  you  would  be  uncomfortable  too.  If  my  desire 
had  come  to  pass  I  should  have  pitied  you  ;  for  you  would 
often  have  been  very  badly  off  for  a  bed,  and  roughly  lodged. 
Farewell.  I  shall  die  if  I  do  not  see  you  soon."  '2 

On  his  return  Konigsmarck  renewed  his  court  to  the 
Princess,  with  varying  fortune  as  before. 

Great  military  activity  now  prevailed  at  Hanover  and 
Celle.  The  Duke  of  Hanover,  satisfied  that  the  electorate 
was  to  come  soon,  at  last  declared  for  the  Allies.  The 
diplomacy  of  William  of  Orange  had  triumphed  all  along 
the  line.  The  Brunswick  princes  were  sending  troops  to 
Flanders.  Saxony  had  been  bribed  with  a  present  of  one 
hundred  thousand  rix-dollars  and  the  promise  of  the  Garter. 
Brandenburg  had  been  conciliated  ;  and,  last  and  most 
difficult  of  all,  Denmark  and  Sweden  were  appeased  for 
awhile.  But  these  negotiations  lost  time ;  and  while  the 
Allies  were  haggling  and  William  conciliating  Louis  again 
took  the  field.  In  vain  William  tried  to  hasten  his  con- 
federate princes  ;  they  were  late  as  usual  in  sending  troops. 
The  French  king  started  on  his  campaign,  and  his  progress 
resembled  a  triumphal  march.  To  gratify  his  love  of  dis- 
play, Louis  held  a  grand  review  near  Mons,  the  scene  of 

1  Reinbek  is  a  village  close  to  Hamburg. 

2  The  letter  concludes  with  many  more  expressions  of  devotion. 


170   THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

his  triumph  the  previous  year.  The  pageant  over,  he  set 
forth  to  lay  siege  to  Namur.  Fully  alive  to  the  advantage 
gained  by  the  French,  King  William  made  every  effort  to 
hurry  his  laggard  allies,  with  the  result  that  the  troops  of 
the  several  princes  gradually  took  the  field. 

The  troops  of  Celle  and  Hanover  were  to  be  commanded 
by  Prince  George  Louis,  and  preparations  at  Hanover  were 
pushed  forward  with  all  speed.  Konigsmarck  was  to  go- 
with  his  regiment ;  but  to  the  astonishment  of  all  he  mani- 
fested no  enthusiasm  to  serve  in  the  campaign,  and  lingered 
until  the  eleventh  hour.  His  letter  to  the  Princess  will 
explain  his  conduct.  Knowing  how  she  was  spied  upon, 
and  doubtful  of  her  strength  and  his,  the  Princess  was 
afraid  to  risk  a  parting  in  private.  He  writes  : — 

"  [HANOVER,  June.] 

"  The  reluctance  you  have  shown  to  speak  to  me  sur- 
prises me  ;  nay,  more,  it  makes  me  tremble.  But  I  will 
still  try  to  believe  that  you  could  not  do  otherwise  without 
giving  ground  for  suspicion.  Yet  one  should  risk  something 
when  it  is  a  question  of  '  Good-bye '  for  six  months.1  I 
think  so,  for  instead  of  going  I  linger  here.  See  how  much 
I  love  you  !  I  neglect  my  duty,  which  calls  me  away  for 
the  rest  of  the  year,  though  it  is  so  urgent  that  I  ought  to 
go  at  once.  But,  my  dear  one,  how  can  I  leave  without 
bidding  you  adieu  ?  My  love  does  not  suffer  me — I  would 
rather  die.  I  will  not  reproach  you  ;  I  will  keep  silence 
and  watch  you  at  the  games,  for  Madame  la  Princesse 
must  play,  apparently !  I  will  go ;  but  it  must  be  from 
your  lovely  eyes  that  I  learn  my  fate.  If  you  do  not  like 
to  .say  '  Good-bye,'  let  me  see  it  in  your  eyes, — they  will 
give  me  light.  Unless  I  cruelly  deceive  myself,  I  shall 
find  much  love  in  them.  If  I  had  sufficient  self-control 
could  I  not  have  gone  away — could  I  not  have  had  orders 
so  pressing  that  it  would  have  been  impossible  for  me  to 
return,  or  perchance  feigned  an  illness  as  an  excuse  for 
not  bidding  you  farewell?  Yet  I  am  glad  that  you  give 
me  the  opportunity  of  showing  you  how  much  stronger  my 
love  is  than  yours.  I  am  truly  your  slave,  and  wear  your 
chains  with  joy." 

1  The  Hanoverian  troops  were  away  about  six  months — June  to  late 
October. 


CROSSING  THE  RUBICON  171 

And  again  : — 

"  I  cannot  leave  Hanover  without  writing  to  you,  yet  to 
write  renews  my  grief.  The  torments  of  hell  would  not 
pain  me  more  than  distance  and  absence  from  you.  How 
happy  I  should  be  if  I  could  be  as  one  of  the  least  of  your 
servants,  to  be  near  you,  to  hear  your  voice  !  I  would 
willingly  change  my  condition  for  the  common  sentinel,  for 
at  least  I  could  stand  under  your  windows  and  worship  you 
from  there.  Alas  !  that  cannot  be  ;  and  since  I  am  destined 
to  suffer,  assure  me  of  your  love  and  constancy.  Adieu." 

At  last  Konigsmarck  tore  himself  away,  and  left  Hanover 
for  the  camp,  to  march  on  the  morrow  to  Flanders.  At  this 
point  the  Princess's  letters  begin. 


CHAPTER  XIV. 

THE  PRINCESS'S  LETTERS. 

My  letters !  all  dead  paper,  mute  and  white  ! 

ELIZABETH  BARRETT  BROWNING. 

I  can  but  do  as  wills  the  spirit  in  me, 
Which  is  your  spirit's  servant.     Ah  !  my  lord, 
My  one  love  every  way,  my  poor  heart's  blood, 
Breath  of  my  lips,  and  eyesight  of  mine  eyes, 
How  did  I  live  the  life  that  loved  you  not  ? 

SWINBURNE. 

THE  Duke  of  Hanover,  astute  time-server  that  he  was,  must 
have  doubted  at  first  whether  he  had  done  wisely  in  again 
throwing  in  his  lot  with  King  William,  for  victory  every- 
where attended  the  arms  of  Louis.  The  French  king  made 
rapid  progress  with  the  siege  of  Namur,  and  on  the  eighth 
day  the  virgin  fortress  surrendered  to  his  conquering  army. 
The  citadel  fell  three  weeks  later.  This  victory  marked  the 
summit  of  the  great  monarch's  glory.  Te  Deums  were  sung 
in  all  the  churches  of  France,  and  his  camp  rang  with  shouts 
of  triumph.  But  even  in  this  hour  of  victory  there  came  to 
Louis  a  reminder  that  he  was  not  everywhere  invincible  ; 
for  while  he  lay  before  Namur,  his  priests  chanting,  his 
•cannon  blaring,  sounds  of  rejoicing  reached  him  from  the 
camp  of  the  Allies — rejoicings  over  the  naval  victory  of  La 
Hogue,  wherein  the  English  admiral,  Russell,  had  utterly 
routed  the  French  ships,  and  shattered  for  ever  James  II.'s 
chances  of  reascending  the  throne  of  England.  The  French 
.king  affected  to  treat  this  reverse  lightly,  and  a  short  time 
.after  retired  to  Versailles,  leaving  Luxemburg,  the  first 
general  of  France,  in  command  of  the  army. 

William  hastened  towards  Namur  in  the  hope  of  bringing 
relief,  but  he  was  too  late.  Between  him  and  the  already 
fallen  fortress  lay  the  troops  of  Luxemburg.  The  grand 
army  of  the  Allies  then  took  up  their  headquarters  at 
Lambeque,  and  William  was  sometimes  there  and  some- 

172 


THE  PRINCESS'S  LETTERS  17 y 

times  at  Brussels.  About  six  miles  from  Lambeque,  at 
Steinkirk,  Luxemburg  had  encamped  with  the  main  body 
of  the  French  army.  Thus  the  two  armies  remained 
throughout  July,  almost  within  sight  of  one  another;  but 
the  country  between  was  full  of  hedges  and  ditches,  and 
neither  would  make  the  attack.  The  delay  gave  William 
one  advantage :  it  afforded  time  for  the  laggard  troops  of 
his  German  allies  to  come  up. 

The  Hanoverian  troops,  commanded  by  Prince  George 
Louis  and  accompanied  by  Prince  Christian,  fifth  son  of  the 
Duke,1  and  with  Konigsmarck  in  command  of  a  regiment  of 
foot-guards,  began  their  march  to  Flanders  the  first  week 
in  June.  On  the  day  they  set  out  the  Duke  of  Hanover, 
accompanied  by  Prince  George  Louis  and  the  English  envoy 
Colt,  went  to  the  camp  and  held  a  grand  review. 

The  Duke  of  Hanover  ordered  a  general  thanksgiving 
to  celebrate  the  victory  of  La  Hogue  and  so  testify  his 
fidelity  to  the  English  king.  To  set  the  seal  upon  it,  Colt 
gave  a  magnificent  entertainment,  a  banquet  and  a  ball. 
He  writes  : — 

"  The  Duke  and  Duchess  with  all  their  courts  have  done 
me  the  honour  to  sup  with  me,  when  they  and  the  greatest 
part  of  the  city  proclaimed  their  affection  and  good  will  to 
His  Majesty."  And  again  :  "  My  share  in  the  affair  [the 
general  rejoicings]  you  will  see  at  large  in  the  paper  apart 
[probably  the  bill]  which  I  hope  will  be  approved  of.  I 
have  on  this  occasion  given  a  greater  diversion  than  ever 
they  saw  in  this  place." 2 

Sophie  Dorothea  was  present  at  Colt's  entertainment 
and  took  part  in  the  festivities.  Her  husband,  who  went  to 
Brockhausen  after  the  review  to  take  leave  of  the  Duke  of 
Celle,  came  back  to  Hanover  on  purpose  to  attend  the 
celebrations,  and  a  few  days  later  he  set  out  for  Flanders^ 
The  Princess  then  left  Hanover  on  a  visit  to  her  parents  at 
Brockhausen  ;  she  remained  there  for  some  weeks.  Prince 
Maximilian  was  also  staying  with  the  Duke  of  Celle,  still 
in  disgrace  with  his  father,  and  urging  his  uncle  to  use  his 
influence  to  save  Moltke's  life.  His  prayers  were  unavailing. 
Moltke  was  executed  at  Hanover  in  the  second  week  of  July,. 

1  For  whom  the  Duchess  Sophia  wished  the  command  of  an  English 
regiment,  which  he  did  not  get. 

2  Colt's  Despatches,  Hanover,  June  20,  1692. 


THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

and  the  court  went  to  Luisburg — a  country  place  of  the 
Duke  of  Hanover,  about  twenty  leagues  distant — to  be  out 
•of  the  way. 

All  this  time,  from  the  day  of  their  parting,  the  Princess 
was  in  constant  correspondence  with  Konigsmarck,  who  was 
marching  with  his  regiment  to  Flanders.  He  joined  the 
•grand  army  near  Brussels  about  the  middle  of  July,  and  his 
letters  to  the  Princess  were  written  from  the  camp  and 
different  halting-places  on  the  line  of  march,  while  she  wrote 
to  him  from  Hanover  and  Brockhausen. 

Whatever  restraint  Sophie  Dorothea  may  have  put  upon 
herself  in  public  converse  with  her  lover,  no  trace  of  it  appears 
in  her  letters.  Believing  that  she  was  writing  to  him  alone, 
she  pours  forth  her  soul  in  absolute  abandonment.  She 
gives  herself  to  him  so  completely,  so  unreservedly,  and 
withal  so  intimately,  that  one  almost  shrinks  from  laying 
bare  this  confession  of  woman's  love  for  man. 

The  Princess  to  Konigsmarck. 

"  [HANOVER,  undated.] 

"  I  spent  the  stillness  of  the  night  without  sleeping,  and 
all  the  day  thinking  of  you,  weeping  over  our  separation. 
Never  did  a  day  seem  so  long  to  me ;  I  do  not  know  how 
I  shall  ever  get  reconciled  to  your  absence.  La  Gouvernante l 
has  just  given  me  your  letter ;  I  received  it  with  rapture. 
Rest  assured  I  will  do  even  more  than  I  have  promised, 
and  lose  no  opportunity  of  showing  you  my  love.  If  I 
could  shut  myself  up  while  you  are  away  and  see  no  one 
I  would  do  so  gladly,  for  without  you  everything  is  dis- 
tasteful and  wearisome.  Nothing  can  make  your  absence 
bearable  to  me  ;  I  am  faint  with  weeping.  I  hope  to  prove 
by  my  life  that  no  woman  has  ever  loved  man  as  I  love 
you,  and  no  faithfulness  will  ever  equal  mine.  In  spite  of 
every  trial  and  all  that  may  befall,  nothing  will  sever  me 
from  you.  Of  a  truth,  dear  one,  my  love  will  only  end  with 
my  life. 

"  I  was  so  changed  and  depressed  to-day  that  even  the 
Prince,  my  husband,  pitied  me,  and  said  I  was  ill  and  ought 
to  take  care  of  myself.  He  is  right, — I  am  ill ;  but  my 

1  This  must  have  been  another  name  for  the  Fraulein  von  Knesebeck, 
La  Confidente. 


OF  a  * 


«     i 
$   A, 


t  I 

§  jo 

Si  S 

**  c 

•N»  *C 

.1  " 


g       j> 


THE  PRINCESS'S  LETTERS  175 

illness  comes  only  from  loving  you,  and  I  never  wish  to  be 
•cured.  I  have  not  seen  any  one  worth  mentioning.  I  went 
to  visit  the  Duchess  [Sophia]  for  a  little  while,  but  returned 
home  as  soon  as  possible,  to  have  the  joy  of  talking  about 
you.1  La  Gazelle's  husband  2  came  to  wish  me  good-bye  ; 
I  saw  him  in  my  chamber,  and  he  kissed  my  hand. 

"  It  is  now  eight  o'clock,  and  I  must  go  and  pay  my 
court.  How  dull  I  shall  seem  ! — how  stupid  !  I  shall 
withdraw  immediately  after  supper,  so  that  I  may  have  the 
pleasure  of  reading  your  letters  again,  the  only  pleasure  I 
have  while  you  are  away.  Farewell,  my  worshipped  one. 
Only  death  will  sever  me  from  you  ;  all  human  powers  will 
never  succeed.  Remember  all  your  promises,  and  be  as 
constant  as  I  will  be  faithful." 

"[HANOVER,]  June  12,  Sunday. 

"  I  have  no  news  of  you  ;  I  am  restless,  in  despair,  full 
of  sad  forebodings.  I  cannot  believe  that  you  would  will- 
ingly neglect  me,  you  have  so  deeply  convinced  me  of  your 
faithfulness  ;  but  I  love  you  too  fondly  to  be  free  from  the 
anxiety  inseparable  from  such  love.  I  am  not  getting 
reconciled  to  your  absence ;  it  is  intolerable,  and  nothing 
can  equal  my  grief  at  being  so  far  from  my  adored  one. 
I  deluded  myself  with  the  hope  that  I  might  have  seen  you 
after  the  review  ;  I  could  have  done  so  in  all  liberty,  as  the 
Prince  was  away.  That  false  hope  made  me  keep  vigil 
two  nights  at  the  window,  and  every  one  who  passed  I 
fancied  was  you.  La  Confidents  kept  telling  me  differ- 
ently, but  I  would  hear  no  reason. 

"  I  must  give  you  an  account  of  my  day.  I  retired 
after  dinner.  In  the  evening  there  was  music,  and  I  played 
a  little, — that  is  all.  You  must  be  pleased  with  my  con- 
duct. .  .  .  Do  not  forget  your  oaths,  nor  let  absence  lessen 
the  love  you  swore  to  me,  for  I  love  y»u  to  madness,  and 
the  mere  thought  that  you  may  forget  is  enough  to  upset 
my  reason.  Above  all,  be  faithful  to  me,  or  I  shall  die. 
The  Duchess  to-day  spoke  much  of  your  beauty  and 
the  regularity  of  your  features.  Alas  !  I  fear  me  others 

1  I.e.,  with  La  Confidente. 

9  La  Gazelle  may  have  been  Countess  Lewenhaupt  (so  called  because 
of  her  gazelle-like  eyes),  whose  husband  was  about  to  march  with  the  Duke 
of  Celle's  troops  to  Flanders. 


176   THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

will  discover  this  comeliness  too ;  -it  will   cost   me  many 
tears. 

"  I  must  end  this.  It  is  three  o'clock,  and  I  must  go 
to  bed.  Never  doubt  my  fidelity  ;  it  is  inviolable.  I  will 
live  and  die  yours  only." 

Konigsmarck  to  the  Princess. 

"  [THE  CAMP,  undated.] 

"  You  must  let  me  complain,  ma  cherie,  of  the  mean 
farewell  you  gave  me.  My  love  deserved  something  far 
different ;  but  if  you  had  a  heart  of  ice  you  could  not  have 
given  me  a  colder  parting.  I  found  the  company  very 
lively  at  the  camp,  every  one  sword  in  hand,  prancing  to 
the  music  of  trumpets  and  kettledrums  ;  but  it  all  diverted 
me  so  little  that  I  wished  myself  twenty  leagues  away.  My 
dejection  was  so  apparent  that  Monsieur  Bielke 1  asked  me 
what  was  the  matter,  and  why  I  would  not  drink  a  glass 
of  wine  with  him.  I  told  him  that  1  knew  he  was  vexed 
about  Aurora,  and  I  was  annoyed  too,  but  I  hoped  he  would 
not  blame  me  in  any  way,  as  I  knew  nothing  about  it.  He 
embraced  me,  and  said  he  was  sure  I  did  not,  but  the  pain 
she  had  caused  him  the  last  two  days  surpassed  everything ; 
and  much  more — too  long  to  write — I  will  keep  it  for  word 
of  mouth.  I  will  only  add  that  he  swore  awful  oaths  that 
he  would  never  speak  to  her  again.  The  clinking  of  glasses, 
the  noise  of  trumpets  and  kettledrums,2  mingled  with  the 
softer  sound  of  flutes  and  the  hoarse  cries  of  men  drinking, 
made  the  drollest  harmony  in  the  world  ;  but  the  revelry 
gave  me  opportunity  to  hide  myself  in  a  corner  and  dream 
at  will.  Whilst  the  others  kissed,  embraced,  danced, 
stripped,  and  jumped  on  the  tables,  I  thought  only  of  my 
sad  plight,  and  I  found  it  so  miserable  that,  in  spite  of  all 
the  festivity,  tears  sjDrang  to  my  eyes  and  I  was  obliged  to 
steal  away  to  go  to  bed.  Three  hours  of  absence  from  you 
have  grieved  me  so  much  that  I  am  no  longer  master  of 

1 "  Count  Bielke  (a  Swedish  envoy),  the  most  dangerous  man  in  these 
parts  .  .  .  full  of  French  designs." — Vide  Colt's  Despatches,  June,  1692. 

2 "According  to  that  old  Teutonic  fashion  with  which  Shakespeare 
has  made  his  countrymen  familiar,  as  often  as  any  of  the  great  princes 
proposed  a  health,  the  kettledrums  and  trumpets  sounded." — Macaulay's 
History  of  England,  vol.  iv.,  p.  7. 


THE  PRINCESS'S  LETTERS  177 

my  heart.     I  am  so  overcome  with  all  these  emotions  that 
I  have  been  beside  myself  all  the  evening." 

"  [WHILE  ON  THE  MARCH,  undated.] 

"  In  this  unpleasant  abode  nothing  could  be  so  dear  to 
me  as  your  dear  letter.  I  read  it  again  and  again  ;  I  know 
it  by  heart,  word  for  word.  It  is  charming  and  tender,  and 
heals  all  jealous  pains.  Be  as  good  as  your  word,  or  you 
will  never  see  your  lover  alive  again. 

"  I  knew  the  Prince  was  not  returning  to  Hanover  after 
the  review,  and  therefore  determined  to  take  the  post  to  see 
you,  but  I  was  watched  so  closely  by  a  spy  of  Countess 
Platen  that  I  dared  not  risk  it.  The  post-horses  were 
ordered  and  ready,  but  I  could  not  get  rid  of  the  man,  who 
is  named  Mesbuck.  You  may  imagine  my  rage,  for  I 
dreamed  of  the  happiness  of  surprising  you  ;  but  my  plan 
miscarried.  I  have  not  had  a  happy  moment  except  those 
your  delightful  letter  gave  me.  I  am  an  hour  from  Det- 
mold.  The  Count  sent  a  coach  with  six  horses  to  meet  me, 
and  a  message  to  say  I  would  find  very  pleasant  company 
at  his  house  ;  but  I  excused  myself  on  the  ground  that  I 
was  too  tired.  I  did  not  tell  him  that  love  fatigued  me. 
My  major  went  to  the  party  in  my  stead,  and  on  his  return 
told  me  all  about  the  company,  with  whom  he  was  greatly 
delighted.  He  praised  the  ladies  to  the  skies.  Meanwhile 
I  had  gone  to  bed  to  think  over  my  sorrows.  I  found  them 
piteous,  and  trembled  to  see  myself  near  the  brink  of  an 
abyss.  But  why  should  I  worry  you  ?  I  have  told  you  so 
many  times  that  I  fear  your  inconstancy,  and  you  have  so 
often  reassured  me,  that  I  am  a  fool  to  doubt ;  yet  I  always 
fear.  Water  falling  drop  by  drop  pierces  the  most  stony 
heart,  and  I  am  sure  you  will  listen  to  me.  You  will  give 
me  your  heart.  You  must  ward  off  evil  at  the  beginning. 

"  In  bidding  farewell  to  us  all,  Marshal  Podevils  *  spoke 

1  Field-Marshal  Heinrich  von  Podevils  is  spoken  of  in  this  correspondence 
as  le  ban  ami,  the  good  friend  of  Konigsmarck  and  Sophie  Dorothea ;  and 
indeed  he  was  so.  Marshal  Podevils  was  born  in  1615  in  Pomerania,  and 
took  service  in  the  Thirty  Years  War.  His  military  talent  was  first  discovered 
by  the  famous  Duke  Bernard  of  Saxe- Weimar.  At  the  death  of  the  Duke, 
Podevils  entered  the  French  Army,  and  advanced  rapidly  in  honour,  and, 
because  of  his  good  services,  he  was  naturalised  in  France.  But  Podevils 
was  a  Huguenot,  and,  in  consequence  of  the  Revocation  of  the  Edict  of 
Nantes,  he  left  the  French  Army,  and  took  service  under  Duke  John  Frederick 

12 


178   THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

to  me  with  much  friendliness  and  sincerity  (it  was  between 
us  alone),  and  he  said  something  which  startled  me  greatly. 
He  said  he  believed  me  to  be  a  man  capable  of  much  dis- 
simulation, and  he  feared  I  had  dissembled  with  him.  I 
was  taken  aback,  and  made  him  many  protestations.  He 
answered  that  he  wished  to  believe  me,  and  promised  his 
friendship ;  but,  in  bidding  good-bye,  he  again  took  me 
aside  and  said  :  '  My  dear  friend,  may  God  guard  thee,  but 
take  this  advice  from  me :  do  not  let  thy  love  ever  hinder 
thee  from  thinking  of  thy  fortune  '.  I  replied  that  con- 
tentment had  more  charms  for  me  than  ambition  ;  but  he 
turned  away  and  answered  nothing.  He  left  me  full  of 
cruel  suspicions.  Try  to  find  out  what  it  is  all  about,  I 
implore  you.  Aurora's  letters  predict  nothing  good.  Mis- 
fortune everywhere  ;  but  so  long  as  one  holds  the  loved 
one,  what  matters  the  price  ?  " 

The  Princess  to  Konigsmarck. 

"  [HANOVER,]  Monday,  13. 

"  I  have  this  moment  received  your  letter — at  last.  I 
hungered  for  it  ;  I  was  sick  with  sadness.  Nothing  now 
gives  me  joy  but  the  token  that  you  remember  me :  I  am 
sensitive  to  that — all  else  is  indifferent.  Grand  Dieu  ! 
what  happiness  it  would  have  been  if  you  could  have  come 
back  !  I  think  I  should  have  died  of  very  joy.  But,  alas  ! 
it  was  not  to  be.  .  .  .  *  This  is  not  the  only  grief  Countess 
Platen  will  cause  me  ;  1  believe  all  my  troubles  will  come 
through  her.  What  our  good  friend  Marshal  Podevils  said 
to  you  doesn't  make  me  anxious  ;  it  concerns  me,  it  is  true, 
but  he  is  an  open  and  honest  man,  and  we  have  nothing  to 
fear  from  that  quarter.  I  am  indeed  grateful  that  you  re- 
fused the  invitation  to  join  the  company  at  Detmold.  It  is 
charming  that  you  should  think  of  me ;  I  pray  you  con- 
tinue to  do  so,  and  be  sure  I  am  not  unworthy.  My  one 

of  Hanover  as  Colonel-in-Chief  of  the  Hanoverian  Army.  When  Duke  Ernest 
Augustus  succeeded  to  the  Duchy  of  Hanover  he  appointed  Podevils  suc- 
cessively General,  Field-Marshal,  President  of  the  Council  of  War,  and 
Governor  of  the  Royal  Palaces  of  Hanover.  Podevils  died  at  Hamburg  in 
1696,  full  of  years  and  of  honour.  The  fact  that  such  a  man  was  the  true 
friend  of  KGnigsmarck,  and  thought  highly  of  him,  speaks  much  in  Konigs- 
marck's  favour. 

1  Some  lines  are  missing  here. 


THE  PRINCESS'S  LETTERS  179 

thought  is  how  to  please  you,  and  I  shall  succeed.     I  am 
in  despair  that  Aurora  has  not  .  .  ." x 

Konigsmarck  to  the  Princess. 

"  IN  THE  COUNTRY  OF  TEGLENBURG,  [June]  8. 

"  I  should  feel  that  I  had  committed  a  mortal  sin  were 
I  to  miss  a  place  where  the  post  passes  without  assuring 
you  of  my  very  humble  obedience,  though  I  can  tell  you  of 
nothing  but  my  love,  and  how* little  life  has  for  me  when  I 
am  away  from  your  sweet  self.  The  farther  I  am  from 
you,  the  more  I  adore  you.  I  fret  night  and  day  without 
finding  any  comfort.  Sometimes  I  wish  the  French  would 
be  beaten,  for  then  there  would  be  a  ray  of  hope  that  I 
should  see  you  again,  because  the  King2  would  not  require 
me ;.  sometimes  I  wish  myself  dead,  since  I  have  to  live 
without  seeing  you.  In  this  way  am  I  agitated  day  and 
night,  without  any  hope  of  relief.  What  will  become  of 
me,  dear  one,  should  my  love  drive  me  to  madness?  Com- 
fort me  in  my  sad  estate,  and  reassure  me  that  I  shall  see 
you  again — the  most  gracious  lady  in  the  universe,  the 
most  constant,  and  the  most  faithful.  But  I  desire  a  con- 
stancy without  any  reproaches  or  any  coquetry. 

"  I  dined  at  Monsieur  Bussche's 3  yesterday  ;  the  com- 
pany was  not  very  choice — only  some  flighty  people,  so 
lively  that  they  disgusted  me  in  my  sad  mood.  Madame, 
his  wife,  dined  with  us.  She  is  the  best  woman  in  the 
world.  I  don't  know  if  you  are  well  acquainted  with  her  ; 
she  is  extremely  thin,  her  age  is  fifty,  but  she  is  very  witty, 
and  her  conversation  pleased  me  the  more  because  it  ran 
mainly  on  morality  and  devotion.  I  certainly  go  in  for  the 

1  The  letter  is  torn  off  here.    Doubtless  the  Princess  is  beginning  to  allude 
to  Aurora's  intrigue  with  Count  Bielke.  mentioned  in  Konigsmarck's  letter. 

2  King  William  III.  of  England,  commanding  the  allied  armies. 

3  This  Bussche  must  not  be  confounded  with    Bussche  who   married 
Catherine  Meisenbug  (sister  of  Countess  Platen),  sometime  the  mistress  of 
Prince  George  Louis.     That  Bussche  died  in  1688,  and,  as  we  have  seen, 
his  widow  subsequently  married  General  Weyhe.     The  Bussche  above  men- 
tioned was  a  kinsman.     He  was  subsequently  president  of  the  court  which 
divorced  the  Princess  Sophie  Dorothea  from  the  Electoral  Prince. 

A  little  later  we  find  Colt  also  writing :  "  They  have  sent  Monsieur 
Bussche,  one  of  their  privy  councillors,  to  the  Elector  of  Brandenburg,  to 
press  him  to  a  speedy  compliance  with  his  former  promise." — Colt's  De- 
spatches, Hanover,  June  26,  1692. 

12* 


180    THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

latter.  I  pray  always  that  my  passion  may  not  become 
fatal  to  me,  and  God  may  keep  you  constant  and  make 
you  an  example  to  all  your  sex.  I  commend  you  to  the 
Divine  protection  to  keep  you  straight,  so  that  I  may  never 
be  tortured  by  thinking  you  behave  badly.  I  hope  to 
receive  some  of  your  letters  from  Wesel." 

The  Princess  to  Konigsmarck. 

"  [HANOVER,]  Monday,  20. 

"  At  my  awakening  they  gave  me  your  letter.  I  found 
it  charming,  loving,  and  all  I  would  have  it  to  be.  Con- 
tinue to  feel  as  you  write,  for  if  you  change  I  will  not  live. 
When  1  think  each  step  you  take  removes  you  farther  from 
me,  I  despair.  Thousands  of  times  I  have  thought  of 
following  you.  What  would  I  not  sacrifice  to  be  always 
with  you  !  Alas  !  I  should  be  too  happy  ;  there  is  no  such 
perfect  joy  in  this  world.  I  avoid  all  men,  and  speak  only 
to  women :  pray  do  not  thank  me  for  this,  for  I  am  pleased 
to  do  it.  I  never  leave  my  chamber.  I  start  to-morrow,1 
and  go  this  evening  to  bid  farewell  to  the  Duchess.  Prince 
Ernest  is  going  to  visit  the  Electress  of  Brandenburg,  and 
perhaps  they  will  return  together. 

"  If  I  were  to  tell  you  all  I  feel  and  how  vast  is  my  love, 
I  should  never  end  ;  it  is  beyond  all  I  can  find  words  to  tell, 
and  I  should  count  myself  happy  indeed  were  your  love  to 
equal  mine.  I  will  not  preach  to  you  to  be  faithful  to  me, 
it  would  be  unavailing  ;  but  I  shall  die  if  you  are  not.  I 
have  told  you  thousands  of  times  that  all  the  peace  of  my 
life  depends  on  your  fidelity.  You  may  find  others  more 
lovable,  but  never  one  so  loving  ;  your  slightest  wish  will 
be  always  law  to  me.  But  why  should  you  change  ?  You 
are  loved  to  idolatry — your  heart  is  sound.  Farewell,  cher 
enfant.  You  will  be  for  ever  loved." 

The  next  day  the  Princess  left  Hanover  for  Brockhausen 
on  a  visit  to  her  parents.  Colt  mentions  in  his  despatch  of 
June  17  the  fact  that  the  Duke  of  Celle  was  staying  at 
Brockhausen,  thus  corroborating  the  Princess's  letters,  which 
are  written  from  there  after  the  2Oth. 

1  For  Brockhausen. 


THE  PRINCESS'S  LETTERS  181 

"  BROCKHAUSEN  [undated]. 

"  The  only  joy  left  me  now  is  assuring  you  of  my  un- 
alterable devotion  :  my  love  grows  daily.  I  am  glad  to 
be  in  this  quiet  place,  for  it  gives  me  more  time  to  think 
of  you :  my  mind  is  full  of  you  only.  My  father  and 
mother  often  speak  to  me,  but  I  don't  hear  them,  for  my 
heart  and  my  thoughts  are  far  away— with  you.  I  have 
not  had  a  moment's  happiness  since  you  left ;  and  when  I 
think  it  will  be  four  or  five  months  before  we  can  meet 
again,  I  fall  into  a  melancholy  I  cannot  hide.  Sad  fore- 
bodings crowd  in  upon  me  ;  I  fear  they  will  separate  us 
for  ever,  or  put  obstacles  in  the  way  of  our  happiness.  I 
see  myself  on  the  edge  of  a  precipice  (as  indeed  1  am).  If 
you  saw  my  sad  state  you  would  pity  me. 

"  You  may  be  easy  about  my  conduct  ;  nothing  on  that 
account  need  ruffle  your  quiet  or  trouble  your  rest.  To-day, 
for  instance,  scarcely  was  I  dressed  than  I  had  to  dine. 
Afterwards  I  went  to  see  my  mother  for  a  little  while,  and 
then  she  sent  me  home.1  Max2  escorted  me.  I  left  him 
in  the  antechamber ;  I  did  not  stop  a  moment.  He  is 
more  stupid  than  ever ;  he  was  quite  confused.  My  father 
came  to  see  me  and  showed  me  many  attentions.  I  played 
with  Chauvet.3  We  supped,  and  then  I  retired,  without 
staying  to  talk  to  any  one.  Good-night  ;  I  must  to  bed. 
Alas  !  what  sad  nights  since  you  left  me  !  When  I  think  of 
the  joys  we  shared  together  and  my  loneliness  now,  a  great 
pang  goes  through  me.  Be  true,  dear  one, — all  the  happi- 
ness of  my  life  hangs  on  it.  I  live  only  for  you." 

1  The  Duke  of  Celle's  hunting-box  at  Brockhausen  was  very  small,  and, 
as  the  accommodation  was  insufficient,  the  Princess  and  her  suite  were  lodged 
in  a  house  hard  by. 

2  Prince  Max  was  staying  with  the  Duke  of  Celle  for  a  time,  who  was 
trying  to  talk  him  to  reason  (vide  Colt's  despatches).     The  Princess's  estimate 
of  Prince  Max's  character  agreed  in  the  main  with  that  of  Colt,  who,  speaking 
of  his  share  in  the  Moltke  plot,  says:   "Nor  indeed  was  his  [Prince  Max's] 
own  capacity  very  fit  for  it,  though  he  is  a  very  worthy  gentleman,  and  much 
improved  since  he  hath  been  at  home  these  two  years,  having  before  lost  his 
time  by  being  too  much  delighted  with  the  pleasures  of  Venice,  where  he  had 
been  in  service  five  years." 

3  Marshal   Jeremiah    Chauvet   was   one   of  the  Frenchmen  whom  the 
Duchess  Eleonore  brought  in  her  train  to  the  court  of  Celle.     He  was  not 
of  noble  birth,  but  the  son  of  a  blacksmith  in  Lorraine.     In  1670  the  Duke 
of  Celle  advanced  him  to  the  rank  of  colonel,  and  he  became  successively 
major-general,  general,  and  field-marshal. 


1 82        THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

"  BROCKHAUSEN,  J""e  25. 
J"iy  5 

"  I  hoped  to  have  had  news  of  you  from  Wesel,  and 
am  much  cast  down  because  none  came.  I  attribute  it  to 
the  carelessness  of  your  servants  at  Hanover,  for  I  scarcely 
think  you  would  neglect  me  :  at  least,  let  me  flatter  myself 
to  that  extent ;  it  is  the  only  consolation  I  have  left.  When 
I  think  you  love  me  I  forget  all  the  disasters  which  threaten 
— but  I  shall  worry  you  with  my  fears.  My  father  and 
mother  overwhelm  me  with  kindness,  and,  most  reassuring, 
they  have  not  mentioned  your  name  since  I  came  here. 
I  am  rather  surprised  at  this,  but  I  hope  they  are  satisfied 
with  what  I  told  them  before. 

"  I  heard  yesterday  of  the  death  of  La  Court's  J  brother. 
It  was  a  shock,  for  I  thought  of  you.  Like  you,  he  was 
young,  he  was  well,  yet  now  he  is  dead.  You  cannot 
imagine  my  sad  reflections  :  I  fear  for  you  more  than  ever. 
If  you  truly  love  me,  be  careful  of  yourself  for  my  sake  ; 
for  if  anything  happened  to  you,  what  would  become  of 
me?  I  would  not  stay  a  moment  in  this  world  ;  life  would 
be  impossible.  As  it  is,  since  you  went  away,  I  lead  only 
a  lingering  life  ;  but  I  look  forward  to  seeing  you  again, 
and  that  hope  brings  consolation.  What  would  be  left  if 
I  lost  it  ?  But  I  will  not  fret  myself  with  these  sad  thoughts  ; 
all  my  prayers  and  desires  are  for  your  safety.  Day  and 
night,  night  and  day,  the  good  God  is  troubled  with  the 
prayers  I  offer  Him  for  you.  If  you  but  knew  how  intense 
is  my  love  you  would  pity  me  ;  it  increases  every  moment, 
absence  does  not  lessen  it.  Without  change  or  swerving 
I  love  you,  and  everything  that  touches  you,  so  tenderly, 
so  perfectly,  so  delicately,  that  imagination  fails  to  tell. 

"  I  take  a  positive  delight  in  avoiding  persons.  My 
parents  and  Bernstorff  are  pleased.  They  think  I  shun 
every  one  because  I  wish  to  be  with  them ;  they  little 
know  it  is  because  of  you — that  I  may  show  you  my 
devotion  and  my  love.  They  talk  of  going  to  Wiesbaden. 
My  mother  wishes  it,  as  her  health  is  very  indifferent,  and 
my  father  thinks  of  going  too,  and  they  want  me  to  go 
with  them.  Let  me  know  if  you  approve.  If  you  do  not, 
they  will  find  it  difficult  to  make  me  go ;  but  as  long  as  I 
please  you  the  rest  counts  for  nothing." 

1  Probably  some  court  lady  at  Hanover. 


THE  PRINCESS'S  LETTERS  i%$ 

Konigsmarck  to  the  Princess. 

"  BORGUEM  on  the  i6th  [June}. 

"  My  courier  has  brought  me  a  packet  of  letters  with- 
out any  from  you  ;  it  is  incredible.  The  post  goes  by 
again  to-morrow,  and  if  I  get  none  it  will  nearly  kill  me.  I 
hope  my  correspondent  has  sent  them  to  Antwerp.  I  have 
written  to  the  Widow  Goodsblut ;  but  if  it  turn  out  that 
she  has  none  either  I  shall  die  of  grief.  Have  you  forgotten 
the  man  who  worships  you  in  the  space  of  a  fortnight  ?  I 
shall  wait  eight  days,  and  then,  if  I  hear  nothing,  I  shall 
know  you  love  me  no  longer,  and  I  will  hasten  to  the  grand 
army  (as  soon  as  I  know  from  Antwerp)  and  seek  a  glorious 
death.  Then  you  can  boast  that  your  unfaithfulness  has 
killed  me.  But  first  tell  the  world  the  promises  you  vowed 
to  me,  and  let  that  theatre  judge  if  I  were  wrong  in  seeking 
death.  Can  it  be  that  God  has  made  such  a  charming 
woman  with  so  little  fidelity  ?  I  am  like  a  man  on  whom 
sentence  of  death  has  been  passed  and  who  is  waiting  for 
the  hour  of  his  execution.  I  hardly  feel  as  if  I  were  alive. 
My  mind  is  so  troubled  that  I  can  scarcely  finish  this  page. 
Farewell,  perhaps  for  ever  ! 

"  I  am  three  leagues  from  Wesel.  The  post  goes  by 
again  without  any  letter  from  you.  Cruel  one !  is  it  pos- 
sible that  you  have  such  a  traitor's  heart,  and  forget  me  so 
soon  ?  " 

The  Princess  to  Konigsmarck. 

"  BROCKHAUSEN,  £f£!^ 
'July? 

"I  do  not  deserve  your  reproaches  ;  I  shall  never  de- 
serve them.  I  cannot  imagine  why  you  accuse  me  of 
negligence,  for  even  if  you  do  not  receive  my  letters  you 
ought  to  know  me  well  enough  not  to  lay  the  blame  on  me. 
The  fault  is  not  mine,  I  assure  you.  Is  it  possible  you 
mean  all  you  say  ?  You  occupy  my  heart  solely  and  en- 
tirely ;  all  the  rest  is  of  so  little  account  that  I  do  not  give 
it  a  thought.  I  have  written  with  all  possible  regularity  ; 
if  I  could  have  written  oftener  I  would  have  done  so  gladly, 
for  my  only  pleasure  is  to  make  you  remember  me  and 
assure  you  of  my  love  and  faithfulness.  But  this  place 
[Brockhausen]  is  so  far  from  every  means  of  communica- 


1 84   THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

tion  that  it  greatly  delays  the  joy  of  receiving  your  letters, 
and  the  same  reason,  I  fear,  may  lead  to  your  receiving 
mine  very  irregularly ;  besides,  the  floods  are  so  great  that 
the  couriers  cannot  pass,  and  so  they  are  obliged  to  remain 
here  all  the  week.  I  spend  the  whole  day  with  my  mother, 
who  talks  to  me  of  the  danger  of  abandoning  one's  self  to 
one's  penchant.  I  say  '  Amen '  to  it  all,  and  so  get  on  well 
with  her,  and  all  of  them. 

"  I  have  a  thousand  fears  about  you.  Chauvet  told  me 
yesterday  that  according  to  all  appearances  there  might 
be  a  battle  to-day.  You  know  how  I  love  you.  Imagine, 
then,  my  state  of  mind  when  I  think  that  the  only  being 
I  care  for  in  the  world,  for  whom  only  I  live,  is  exposed 
to  thousands  of  dangers.  If  you  love  me,  take  care  of 
yourself;  I  should  die  if  any  accident  were  to  happen  to 
you.  I  am  leading  the  saddest  life  imaginable.  The  more 
change  I  have  the  more  I  find  that  cure  is  useless,  for 
everywhere  I  carry  my  love  and  my  sorrow.  The  burden 
is  no  easier  for  me  in  this  peaceful  place.  I  see  no  end  to 
my  worries,  and  the  time  I  have  to  get  through  without 
you  seems  an  eternity.  But  what  joy  when  1  see  you 
again !  It  will  be  impossible  for  me  to  moderate  my 
transports  ;  I  fear  everybody  will  see  how  much  I  love 
you.  It  matters  little,  for  you  are  worthy,  and  I  never  can 
love  you  enough." 

Kdnigsmarck  to  the  Princess. 

"  VENLO,  July  — ,  1692. 

"It  is  true,  then,  that  you  have  forgotten  me,  and  the 
pleasures  of  the  comedy,  the  music,  and,  what  is  worse,  the 
foreigners,1  are  the  cause  of  your  forgetfulness  ?  I  know  it 
from  Monsieur  le  Prince,2  with  whom  I  dined  to-day.  1 
suppose  this  is  the  way  to  love ;  but  I,  alas !  cannot.  I 
have  neglected  everything  since  I  left  you  ;  I  have  even 
forgotten  to  shave,  and  I  went  all  unkempt  to  the  court 

1  They  were  probably  special  envoys,  who  had  come  to   Hanover  on 
business  connected  with  the  campaign  against  the  Turks  in  the  Morea,  the 
intrigues  concerning  the  Electorate,  and  other  matters.     Colt  mentions  that 
a  Baron  Eck  came  to  the  court  of  Hanover  in  June  from  the  Elector  of 
Saxony,  and  also  a  Baron  Hasfelt  "on  his  way  to  France". 

2  Prince  George  Louis,  who  had  now  joined  the  troops. 


THE  PRINCESS'S  LETTERS  185 

quarter  of  the  camp.  Everybody  stared.  Even  the  Prince 
asked  me  what  was  the  matter,  for  he  found  me  so  haggard 
and  worn.  I  pretended  that  I  had  the  colic  ;  he  little  knew 
the  truth.  Until  now  I  only  feared  that  you  had  forgotten 
me  ;  but  since  I  know  that  the  Piedmontese  Count  and  the 
Austrian  have  arrived,  I  no  longer  doubt  your  inconstancy. 
Cruel  one!  I  .know  my  rivals.  Yes,  I  know  them,  and 
that  is  sufficient.  But  you  have  to  deal  with  a  man  who 
loves  you  to  distraction,  and  you  made  me  believe  you 
loved  me  in  the  same  way.  I  have  neglected  fortune, 
happiness,  everything  for  you,  and  you  treat  me  like  this ! 
It  is  abominable.  I  will  avenge  myself  and  die.  Yes,  I 
will  avenge  myself  in  such  a  way  that  the  whole  world  will 
ring  with  my  wrongs.  You  wished  to  remain  in  your 
chamber  to  bewail  my  departure.  Your  chamber  became 
the  opera  house,  your  weeping  came  from  laughing  over- 
much, and  your  consolation,  instead  of  reading  my  letters, 
as  you  told  me,  was  in  hearing  sweet  things  from  others. 
It  is  too  much.  I  can  bear  no  more.  You  drive  me  to 
•extremities.  I  will  join  the  Elector  of  Bavaria's  service, 
and  then  seek  those  who  have  stolen  from  me  your  un- 
grateful heart." 

"  VENLO.  -• 
'  ii 

"  I  am  sighing  and  trembling  while  I  write  this  to  you. 
I  have  no  idea  how  I  stand  with  you,  for  I  have  received 
only  one  of  your  letters.  I  am  cursing  my  bad  luck,  but, 
alas !  that  does  not  give  me  comfort  in  my  misery.1  .  .  . 
No,  by  Heaven  !  I  will  not  lose  you  !  I  will  move  heaven 
and  earth  before  I  give  you  up.  Were  you  to  change 
yourself  into  Jupiter  I  would  not  fear  the  thunderbolt,  but 
would  try  to  avenge  myself  on  my  rivals.  I  could  not 
get  leave  to  go  to  the  grand  army,  so  I  must  wait  until  our 
troops  march.  It  is  annoying  ;  but  I  bear  all  with  patience. 

"  My  sister  would  like  to  know  if  the  court  is  going  in 
the  autumn  to  some  baths,  as  she  would  greatly  like  to 
go  to  pay  her  respects  to  Madame  la  Princesse.  La 
Confidente  says  nothing  about  the  unfaithfulness  of  her 
good  mistress,  but  that  is  only  natural,  for  if  I  cannot  trust 
you,  neither  can  I  trust  the  people  about  you.  But  you 

1  Here  follow  pages  of  reproaches  and  upbraidings. 


1 86   THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

know  well  that  God  will  punish  you  ;  there  is  nothing  so- 
certain  as  that.     Take  heed  therefore  and  beware." 

The  Princess  to  Konigsmarck. 

"  BROCKHAUSEN,  J^fJ?. 
July  10 

"  Two  of  your  letters  reached  me  to-day,  but  instead  of 
finding  them  full  of  love,  I  found  reproaches  which  I  da 
not  deserve  nor  shall  ever  deserve.  I  cannot  tell  you  my 
surprise  at  the  tone  of  your  letters.  I  have  done  absolutely 
nothing  since  you  left.  I  shall  never  do  anything  all  my 
life  except  what  will  be  agreeable  to  you,  for  my  one 
desire  is  to  make  manifest  the  love  I  bear  you.  My 
constancy  is  without  flaw,  and  I  am  far  from  being  the 
coquette  you  so  unjustly  call  me.  I  could  not  help  burst- 
ing into  tears  when  I  read  all  the  hard  things  you  wrote. 
What  right  or  cause  have  I  given  you  to  have  such  a  bad 
opinion  of  me  ?  Is  it  because  I  love  you  to  adoration, 
because  I  neglect  all  the  friends  I  have  in  the  world,  because 
I  have  not  heeded  the  lectures  and  preachments  of  my 
parents,  nor  thought  of  all  the  misfortunes  that  may  come 
upon  me  through  this  ?  I  cannot  express  to  you  my  grief. 
You  hint  at  my  pleasing  people  who  may  supplant  you  in 
my  affections ;  they  assuredly  do  not  deserve  the  honour 
you  do  them,  and  1  am  ashamed  to  have  to  excuse  myself 
on  their  account.  I  spoke  very  little  to  the  Piedmontese 
Count,  and  not  a  word  to  the  Austrian.  I  wrote  to  you 
very  precisely  about  everything  I  have  done  and  everything 
T  am  prepared  to  do  for  you.  I  have  sworn  all  the  vows 
you  wished,  to  convince  you  thoroughly  of  my  good  faith. 
Nothing  will  make  me  change.  I  love  you  far  above  what 
I  can  tell  you,  even  when  you  give  me  cause  to  repent. 
Yet  you  will  attach  yourself  to  the  Elector  of  Bavaria,  you 
will  forsake  me",  and  all  for  a  suspicion  that  has  not  the  least 
appearance  of  reason!  Is  this  loving?  Do  you  love  me 
still,  or  are  you  only  seeking  a  pretext  to  leave  me?  If 
you  still  have  doubts  it  will  be  very  easy  for  me  to  clear 
them  away,  for  I  have  taken  no  step  nor  done  anything 
whereof  my  conscience  is  afraid.  I  will  gladly  swear 
thousands  of  dreadful  oaths  to  you  on  my  innocence.  I 
shall  have  no  peace  until  I  know  how  I  stand  with  you. 
If  the  tenderest  love  and  the  most  inviolable  faithfulness 


THE  PRINCESS'S  LETTERS  187 

will  satisfy  you,  you  may  be  satisfied,  for  no  love  was  ever 
so  sincere  as  the  love  I  bear  for  you." 

Konigsmarck  to  the  Princess. 

"  FOUR  LEAGUES  FROM  VENLO,  •£-. 

"  The  lieutenant  who  went  to  the  court  quarter  of  the 
camp  brought  me  a  large  bundle  of  letters.  I  was  in 
highest  joy,  thinking  surely  I  should  find  some  from  you  ; 
but  I  was  deceived,  for  I  found  nothing  except  letters  from 
Prince  Ernest  and  from  Marshal  Podevils.  Every  one  is. 
writing  but  you.  I  have  reproached  you  so  much  that  I 
will  say  no  more,  except  that  you  have  been  dancing  at 
Colt's  fete. l  I  will,  however,  wait  for  your  letters  from 
Antwerp,  which  I  hope  will  clear  up  everything.  But  you 
cannot  excuse  your  behaviour  at  Hanover,  especially  when 
the  foreigners  were  there  ;  and  whatever  the  Duke  might 
have  wished  you  to  do,  you  ought  not  to  have  consented. 
This  will  be  the  very  last  letter  I  shall  write  to  you  if  I 
hear  nothing  from  you." 

The  Princess  to  Konigsmarck. 

"  BROCKHAUSEN  [undated  (?  July  2)]. 

"  I  suffer  agony,  and  can  no  longer  bear  the  pain  your 
unjust  suspicions  cause  me.  You  told  me  yourself  to  write 
only  once  to  Wesel,  and  all  my  other  letters  have  gone  to 
Antwerp.  You  ought,  however,  to  have  received  some  of 
them.  I  know  not  to  whom  to  attribute  this  carelessness,, 
but  you  are  greatly  in  the  wrong  if  you  believe  that  I  have 
forgotten  you.  Time  will  prove  my  innocence  and  your 
injustice.  I  am  hurt  to  the  quick,  for  since  your  departure 
my  only  thought  has  been  how  best  to  show  you  my  fidelity. 
I  am  grieved  that  you  are  displeased  because  I  went  to 
Monsieur  Colt's  fete,  but  I  could  not  avoid  going,  they  pressed 
me  so  much.  The  foreigners  did  not  detain  me  at  Hanover  ; 
they  left  a  few  days  before  I  came  to  Brockhausen  ;  I  have 
already  told  you  I  did  not  talk  to  them.  I  am  incapable 
of  deceiving  you,  even  in  thought ;  I  love  you  too  passion- 
ately. Yet  you  believe  I  betray  you.  You  will  not  write 
to  me.  You  plunge  me  in  despair.  How  do  I  know? 

1  Coh'sfete  was  given  on  Sunday,  June  18. 


What  if  some  one  has  held  back  my  letters  to  make  us 
quarrel  ?  I  have  thousands  of  evil  forebodings  and  many 
fears,  but  you  cap  them  all  and  overwhelm  me  with  grief 
by  believing  me  guilty.  Ought  it  even  to  enter  your  mind 
thatj  should  fail  in  the  love  I  bear  you?  I  would  rather 
fail  to  myself,  for  you  are  a  thousand  times  dearer  to  me. 

"  Unfortunately  the  floods  still  detain  us  here.1  I  am 
grieved  because  of  my  letters.  We  may  be  here  for  a  week, 
perhaps." 

"  BROCKHAUSEN,  July  7. 

"  We  start  to-morrow  for  Celle,  where  I  hope  to  find  some 
letters  from  you  ;  I  am  in  sore  need  of  them  to  deliver  me 
from  this  anxiety.  I  have  not  a  moment  of  peace.  I  am 
trembling  for  fear  we  are  betrayed  ;  but  what  I  fear  most 
of  all  is  your  violent  temper,  which  will  not  let  you  reflect 
in  the  least,  nor  give  a  thought  without  at  once  believing  me 
guilty.  This  suspense  is  driving  me  mad.  To-morrow  I 
shall  know  what  to  expect.  If  I  find  nothing  1  am  lost. 
Good-bye." 

1  "  The  extraordinary  floods  have  kept  the  Duke  from  Celle." — Colt's 
Despatches,  July  4,  1692. 


CHAPTER  XV. 

DOUBTS    AND    FEARS. 

Ah,  Love,  but  a  day, 

And  the  world  has  changed  ! 

The  sun's  away 

And  the  bird  estranged. 

BROWNING,  James  Lee's  Wife. 

THE  floods  having  abated,  the  court  of  Celle  left  Brock- 
hausen  and  returned  to  Celle.  The  Princess  accompanied 
her  parents  and  continued  to  stay  with  them.  She  feared 
at  one  time  she  might  have  to  join  the  Hanoverian  court 
at  Luisburg ;  but  instead  she  remained  at  Celle,  and  made 
preparations  for  a  long  visit  to  Wiesbaden  with  her  mother. 
On  arriving  at  Celle  she  writes  to  Konigsmarck  : — 

"  CELLE,  July  g. 

"  I  was  burning  with  impatience  to  get  here,1  for  I  hoped 
to  find  your  letters.  Alas  !  there  were  none,  and  I  spent  a 
night  of  tears.  Again  I  hoped  to  receive  one  this  morning. 
My  hope  was  vain,  and  for  the  last  eight  days,  ever  since 
you  wrote  me  that  cruel  letter,  I  fear  that  we  are  betrayed. 
I  am  trembling  on  the  edge  of  a  precipice,  but  my  own 
danger  is  the  least  of  my  anxieties.  I  scarcely  think  of 
the  misfortunes,  inevitable  and  unavoidable,  which  surely 
await  me  if  discovered  :  you,  only,  occupy  my  thoughts. 
More  than  death  or  disgrace  I  fear  that  you  may  leave  me  ; 
if  you  do,  there  is  no  more  happiness  for  me.  You  are  all 
my  life,  and  if  I  lose  you,  nothing  in  the  world  will  console 
me.  I  shall  not  have  a  moment  of  peace  until  my  fears 
are  set  at  rest. 

"  I  received  a  letter  from  your  sister 2  this  morning 
saying  that  you  had  written  her  a  violent  letter  about  me, 

1 "  The  Duke,  since  his  return  hither  .  .  .  " — Colt's  Despatches,  Celle, 
July  n,  1692. 

2  Aurora  von  Konigsrrjarck. 


190   THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

and  she  had  a  good  mind  to  send  it  on.  I  wish  she  had  ; 
at  least,  I  should  have  seen  what  you  thought  of  me.  She 
tells  me  also  that  if  my  parents  go  to  the  haths  at  Aix,  she 
will  go  there  with  her  sister.1  At  present  they  speak  only 
of  Ems  or  Wiesbaden,  but  it  amounts  to  the  same  thing. 
I  have  already  asked  whether  you  approve  of  my  going  on 
that  journey.  Le  Satyre 2  is  here.  He  tells  me  that  a  little 
while  before  the  discreet  Prince's  departure,  some  woman 
asked  His  Highness  whether  he  did  not  wish  to  fight  you 
because  you  got  on  so  well  with  me,  whereas  he  seemed  to 
be  on  bad  terms  with  me  for  a  long  time  past.  It  is  not 
difficult  to  guess  who  asked  this  question  ! 3  I  have  a 
continual  palpitation  of  the  heart,  which  I  attribute  to  my 
anxiety  the  last  few  days.  You  make  me  suffer,  but  I 
suffer  gladly  for  your  dear  sake." 

"  CELLE,  July  ^. 

"  I  shall  know  my  fate  to-morrow  ;  I  am  waiting  for  it 
with  such  anxiety  that  I  cannot  sleep.  I  feel  sure  that  if 
you  had  received  my  letters  you  would  not  have  missed 
two  posts  without  a  line,  unless  indeed  you  take  pleasure  in 
bringing  me  to  despair.  Everything  tends  to  confirm  my 
fears  that  we  are  betrayed.  If  Countess  Platen  begins  to 
meddle  you  may  imagine  what  there  is  to  dread,  but  I 
tremble  most  at  your  own  violence.  You  say  you  will 
enlist  in  some  other  service,  and  I  shall  see  you  no  more. 
The  thing  may  already  be  done  for  aught  I  know.  I  am 
terribly  depressed  ;  it  may  be  a  foreboding  of  misfortunes 
to  come.  All  I  can  say  is,  that  if  it  costs  you  so  little  to 
give  me  up,  you  have  a  very  feeble  love  after  all.  When 
the  heart  is  deeply  touched  one  does  not  give  up  the  loved 
one  so  easily ;  at  least,  one  takes  the  trouble  to  examine 
thoroughly  the  charges  against  her.  But  I  cannot  expect 
you  to  have  the  patience  to  do  that ;  I  know  your  ways 
too  well.  At  the  first  hint  you  will  break  away  altogether : 
perhaps,  later,  thoughts  and  reflections  will  follow  ;  but  it 
will  be  too  late  then,  and  I  shall  have  the  grief  of  loving 
you  to  adoration,  and  knowing  all  the  while  that  you  have 
never  truly  loved  me.  The  thought  is  so  maddening  that 

1  Countess  von  Lewenhaupt.  2  Some  Hanoverian  courtier. 

3  (?)  The  Countess  Platen. 


SOPHIE    DOROTHEA. 

From  a  fainting  formerly  at  Ahlden,  now  at  Herrenhausen. 


DOUBTS  AND  FEARS  191 

it  nearly  turns  my  brain.  Farewell.  You  will  be  the  cause 
of  all  my  misery  in  the  same  way  as  you  have  been  the 
source  of  all  my  happiness  ;  but  I  love  you — Mon  Dieu  ! 
how  I  love  you  !  " 

Konigsmarck  to  the  Princess. 

"  NEAR  DIST,  Yuly  -  . 

J    J  15 

"  At  last  I  have  been  so  happy  as  to  receive  two  of  your 
letters,  and  as  one  is  dated  Monday,  the  ijth,  and  the  other 
the  1 6th,  I  don't  think  there  are  any  missing.  But  you  tell 
me  in  one  that  you  spoke  in  the  preceding  letter  of  the 
foreigners  at  Hanover.  I  have  not  seen  that  yet.  The 
last  came  from  Antwerp,  on  which  was  all  my  hope. 
I  received  them  in  a  packet — two  letters,  as  I  notify  above ; 
but  what  makes  me  uneasy  is  that  they  have  been  sealed 
with  a  wafer  and  not  with  your  usual  seal.  I  beg  you  tell 
me  the  reason,  for  it  makes  me  most  anxious.  A  funny 
thing  has  happened.  I  wrote  to  Prince  Ernest  joking  about 
many  ladies  of  our  court  ;  I  also  spoke  about  Madame 
la  Princesse,  bu-t  in  such  terms  as  respect  commands. 
I  sent  the  letters  to  the  commissary,  to  forward  to  Hanover. 
A  certain  adjutant  happened  to  see  the  man  carrying  the 
letters,  looked  at  the  top  of  them,  and  as  he  found  one 
addressed  to  '  Monsieur  le  Prince '  he  looked  no  farther, 
but  took  the  whole  bundle  to  our  general,1  who,  without 
looking  at  the  superscription,  opened  it,  but  seeing  it  was 
written  in  terms  of  great  friendship,  he  only  read,  he  says, 
the  beginning,  and  sent  it  back  to  me,  sealed  by  Lenner, 
who  swore  to  me  that  the  Prince  did  not  read  it  all  through. 
The  harm  would  not  have  been  very  great,  except  that 
I  spoke  of  La  Platen  and  Schwartzen  and  La  Schulenburg  '2 
a  little  lightly.  Your  story  about  those  two  made  me 
laugh  as  much  as  my  sadness  would  allow,3  but  I  cannot 
forget  the  stay  you  made  at  Hanover  when  the  foreigners 
were  there.  At  any  other  time  I  should  have  forgiven  you, 
but  as  it  is  I  know  not  what  to  say. 

"  The  day  before  yesterday  I  had  a  long  conversation 
with  my  colonel's  wife  in  the  Capuchins'  garden,  where 

1  Prince  George  Louis,  commanding  the  Hanoverian  troops. 

2  Ermengarda  Melusina  von  Schulenburg,  afterwards  Duchess  of  Kendal, 
mistress  of  the  Prince  of  Hanover. 

3  This  must  refer  to  something  in  a  missing  letter. 


192    THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

I  was  taking  a  solitary  walk.  She  came  up  with  her 
husband  and  several  officers,  and  took  upon  herself  to  chaff 
me  about  my  beard.  Then  she  went  on  to  say  she  pitied 
me  because  I  was  so  unlucky,  and  another  man  was  more 
successful.  I  pressed  her  to  tell  me  whom  she  thought 
I  loved.  She  would  not  tell  me  positively,  but  she  let  me 
know  enough  to  be  sure  she  meant  you.  I  urged  her  to 
tell  me  the  name  of  the  happy  man  ;  I  did  not  want  to  know 
the  name  of  the  lady,  only  the  cavalier,  but  she  refused. 
I  begged  of  her  to  tell  me  where  she  got  her  information. 
She  said  nothing  definite,  but  enough  to  make  me  guess 
she  got  it  from  Madohr.  You  cannot  think  what  an  im- 
pression it  has  made  on  my  mind.  I  tell  you  frankly  that 
unless  you  cure  me  of  my  new  and  just  suspicions  I  shall 
never  return  to  you.  It  will  be  hard  for  me ;  I  shall  not 
be  able  to  survive  it.  But  it  is  better  to  die  than  to  live 
without  being  loved.  ...  In  finishing  my  letter  I  took  up 
yours  again  to  look  for  a  little  comfort.  I  found  some  ; 
but  as  you  only  give  me  an  account  of  the  I3th,  and  as 
the  Prince  went  on  the  6th,1  I  want  to  know  what  you  were 
doing  the  other  days.  Apparently  the  foreigners  were  at 
Hanover,  for  the  Duchess  took  you  to  the  comedy  on  the 
1 3th,  a  sure  sign  that  the  foreigners  were  there,  otherwise 
the  comedy  would  not  have  been  played.  On  the  15th. 
the  little  man  -  went.  You  kept  your  room,  but  not  on  the 
i6th,  lyth,  1 8th,  and  I9th.  What  was  the  day  of  the  fete  ?  * 
There  were  three  days  you  might  have  kept  indoors,  for 
the  Prince's  departure  was  a  good  pretext ;  but  the  desire 
to  be  seen  by  the  foreigners  made  you  forget  all  your 
promises.  You  cared  nothing  about  the  Prince's  departure 
nor  for  mine  ;  both  must  have  been  very  welcome  to  you. 
.  .  .  You  tell  me  in  your  letter,  '  let  us  love  one  another 
for  ever '.  Did  you  really  think  about  what  you  were 
writing?  At  that  very  time  I  believe  your  mind  was  full 
of  pleasing  Monsieur  le  Rittermeister.4  No  doubt  he  told 
you  that  he  had  come  from  the  wilds  of  Turkey  to  admire 

1 /.*.,  to  Brockhausen  after  the  review,  which  was  held  on  June  6,  and, 
as  we  have  seen,  he  did  not  return  to  Hanover  for  some  days. 

2  "  The  little  man  " — the  Prince,  who  set  forth  for  Flanders  on  the  i5th 

(25th). 

3  Colt's  party  and  the  public  rejoicings  to  celebrate  the  victory  of  La 
Hogue. 

4  A  nickname  for  one  of  the  "  foreigners". 


DOUBTS  AND  FEARS  193 

your  beauty,  of  which  he  had  heard  the  Turks  speak  when 
he  was  a  prisoner  amongst  them.  He  charmed  you,  for 
that  sort  of  flattery  is  sure  to  please  a  woman,  and  you 
doubtless  believed  he  was  telling  you  the  truth  ;  but  he 
only  came  to  Hanover  to  pick  up  a  few  hundred  ducats 
to  set  up  his  ruined  equipage  again  before  Grossvardein. 
I  tell  you  that  I  cannot  speak  of  the  man  without  my  blood 
boiling.  I  may  suspect  you  wrongly,  but  appearances  are 
against  you.  I  have  suffered  torments  for  weeks  from  not 
having  received  your  letters.  Your  departure  from  Hanover 
did  not  take  place  when  you  said  ;  I  knew  from  the  first 
that  the  foreigners  were  there.  You  go  to  the  comedy,  the 
festival,  and  the  music,  notwithstanding  that  you  had  a 
good  pretext  to  remain  in  your  rooms  ;  and,  above  all, 
I  know  that  you  talked  with  that  Count.  That  is  the 
foundation  for  my  suspicions." 

The  Princess  to  Konigsmarck. 

"  CELLE,  July  ^. 

'  J     '23 

"  This  morning  I  have  received  a  letter  from  you — at 
last.  I  cannot  describe  my  misery  and  suspense  the  last 
twelve  days  ;  now  nothing  can  equal  my  joy.  Though  you 
reproach  me  so  bitterly,  and  though  you  suspect  me,  it  is  so 
easy  to  justify  myself  that  I  am  not  in  the  least  anxious. 
My  anxiety  is  lost  in  the  fact  that  you  are  unchanged  ;  and 
I  find  charm  and  tenderness  in  all  you  say.  I  implore  you 
remain  in  this  mood,  and  rest  assured  that  I  would  rather 
die  a  thousand  deaths  than  do  anything  to  displease  you. 
I  appreciate  your  sensitive  tenderness.  I  can  assure  you 
that  all  the  actions  of  my  life  will  bear  witness  to  the  love 
I  have  for  you.  I  am  surprised  that  you  still  write  about 
the  foreigners.  I  wrote  to  you  every  day  everything  I  did 
— I  forgot  no  detail  ;  but  you  mix  up  my  narrative  so  much 
that  I  must  endeavour  to  make  clear  all  the  points  which 
puzzle  you,  and  again  relate  everything.  The  Prince  went 
to  Brockhausen  after  the  review.  He  returned  to  Hanover 
the  Friday  following.  On  Saturday  he  and  the  Duke  paid 
me  a  visit  according  to  custom,  and  the  same  day  the  Count 
who  vexes  you  so  much  put  in  an  appearance.  It  is  true 
I  played  in  the  evening,  but  I  only  spoke  to  him  at  the 

'3 


194    THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

dinner-table,  and  that  very  little.  The  next  day  was 
Sunday.  After  dinner  there  was  music.  I  appeared  rather 
late.  I  played  cards,  as  usual,  and  I  spoke  a  few  words  to 
the  Count  as  he  was  looking  on  at  the  game.  On  Monday 
the  Prince  and  the  Duke  went  back.1  The  Duke  was  to 
have  come  for  the  comedy,  but  the  Duchess  came  alone  to 
it,  and  afterwards  she  went  back.  I  am  ready  to  make  any 
vow  you  like  that  I  had  not  the  least  flirtation  with  the 
Count,  nor  had  I  the  wish  or  thought  to  talk  to  him.  The 
day  he  took  his  leave  I  was  passing  through  the  ante- 
chamber of  the  Duchess's  apartments,  but  I  did  not  pause 
a  moment ;  I  went  home  directly.  He  went  away  the 
next  day  (Tuesday).  On  Wednesday  I  did  not  leave  my 
chamber,  as  the  Prince  left.  I  did  not  appear  either  on 
Thursday  or  Friday.  I  saw  no  one  for  four  days  except 
my  women.  On  the  Saturday,  when  the  Prince  and  the 
Duke  came,  I  had  to  show  myself;  and  on  Sunday  was  the 
festival  of  which  I  have  told  you  so  much  already  that  I 
have  no  more  to  say.  On  Monday  I  took  leave  of  the 
Duchess.  On  Tuesday  I  went  home.2  I  am  glad  my 
memory  is  better  than  yours,  for,  were  it  to  fail,  you  are  just 
the  man  to  pick  a  quarrel  about  nothing.  I  should  have  a 
rough  time  of  it ;  but  carping  as  you  are,  I  defy  you  to  find 
fault  with  my  conduct,  for  it  is  irreproachable,  and  my  love 
passes  words.  You  must  surely  see  from  all  I  have  just 
told  you  that  it  was  not  for  the  Count's  beaux yeux  I  lingered 
[at  Hanover].  I  am  ashamed  to  be  compelled  to  justify 
myself  concerning  him.  Neither  he  nor  any  man  in  the 
world  could  make  me  take  any  step  displeasing  to  you.  I 
know,  alas  !  your  sensitiveness  on  these  matters.  Your 
suspicions  and  accusations  of  coquetry  drive  me  to  despair. 
I  have  renounced  such  arts  for  ever,  and  in  giving  myself 
to  you,  I  think  only  how  best  to  please  you  :  all  my  wishes 
are  bounded  there. 

"  It  is  hard  to  excuse  you  for  your  injustice,  except  on 
the  ground  of  the  silly  things  your  colonel's  wife  told  you. 
Have  I  made  any  impression  on  your  mind  ?  You  remem- 
ber, I  told  you  a  thousand  times  that  my  enemies  would 
spare  no  effort  to  part  us,  and  begged  you  urgently  not  to 

1  Perhaps  to  Herrenhausen. 

2 I.e.,  went  to  her  parents  at  Brockhausen.  It  is  noteworthy  that  Han- 
over is  not  "  home  "  to  her. 


DOUBTS  AND  FEARS  195 

listen  to  their  tales.  However,  ask  the  woman  to  give  you 
the  name  of  the  cavalier,  so  that  I  may  see  how  far  her 
audacity  goes.  Were  I  at  Hanover  people  might  tell  me 
the  same  things  about  you,  but  I  should  not  so  readily 
believe  them,  for  I  trust  you,  and  your  promises.  Believe 
me,  my  heart  is  safe  in  your  keeping.  When  you  think  of 
your  merits  and  of  my  love  you  ought  to  have  no  uneasi- 
ness ;  I  belong  so  truly  to  you  that  death  alone  can  part  us. 
The  last  twelve  days  I  have  known,  alas  !  the  extent  of  my 
tenderness  too  well  to  believe  any  one  ever  loved  so  strongly 
as  I  love  you.  I  had  no  doubt  that  I  was  betrayed,  and  the 
Countess  Platen  had  meddled  ;  but  though  I  was  in  danger 
of  being  lost  for  ever,  I  vow  I  never  even  thought  about  it, 
for  you  alone  made  me  anxious.  I  feared  to  lose  you  ;  I 
trembled  lest  on  the  impulse  of  the  moment  you  would 
enlist  in  the  service  of  the  Elector  of  Bavaria,  and  I  should 
see  you  no  more  !  But  I  am  far  different  to-day  :  my  joy 
is  now  so  great  that  I  cannot  hide  it.  Why  am  1  so  far 
from  you  ?  What  joy  to  be  with  you,  to  prove  by  my 
caresses  how  I  love  and  worship  you.  In  God's  name, 
believe  me,  and  put  away  anything  which  might  make  you 
doubt.  Above  all,  do  not  heed  the  silly  tales  you  may 
hear.  We  have  any  number  of  people  to  fear ;  therefore 
let  us  be  on  our  guard.  Be  unto  me  as  I  am  to  you.  If 
you  remember,  you  once  said  you  would  give  up  war  and 
live  for  me  alone,  but  I  fear  you  have  already  forgotten  it. 
If  my  blood  were  wanted  to  ransom  you  from  danger  I 
would  give  it  gladly,  for  I  cannot  exist  without  seeing  you. 
I  lead  a  lingering  life.  I  have  not  really  lived  a  moment 
since  you  left ;  only  your  dear  letters  give  me  a  gleam  of 
gladness.  I  think  of  all  the  joys  we  had  together,  and  then 
on  my  weariness  and  loneliness  to-day.  What  a  difference  ! 
When  will  that  delightful  time  return  ? 

"The  siege  of  Namur1  makes  me  tremble.  Take  care 
of  yourself,  and  remember  that  my  life  is  linked  with  yours. 
Ah !  my  dear  one,  why  am  I  not  with  you  in  the  battle  ? 
I  would  gladly  die  by  your  side.  Once  more,  good-bye. 
My  love  is  inexhaustible  ;  I  belong  to  you  a  thousand  times 
more  than  to  myself. 


1  Namur  was  besieged  throughout  the  first  weeks  of  June.     The  citadel 
fell  about  June  21. 

13* 


196    THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

"  I  got  into  bed  when  I  had  finished  this  and  was  reading 
your  dear  letters.  I  thought  myself  safe  because  I  had  given 
out  that  I  was  asleep  ;  but  to  my  surprise  my  mother  came 
to  wish  me  good-night  a  second  time.  All  La  Confidente 
could  do  was  to  hide  the  letters  under  the  quilt.  I  scarcely 
dared  move  for  fear  the  paper  might  rustle  ;  but  at  last 
my  mother  went  away,  to  my  great  relief,  for  I  was  terribly 
afraid.  I  dislike  all  these  surprises,  but  it  is  impossible  to 
avoid  them." 


28' 

"  I  cannot  employ  my  time  better  than  in  writing  to 
you  ;  it  gives  me  such  delight  that  I  could  spend  whole 
days  at  it,  though  nothing  happens  here  except  the  same 
smooth,  uneventful  round.  But  my  love  is  inexhaustible, 
and  of  itself  would  give  me  enough  to  entertain  you ; 
though  to  tell  you  the  truth  I  am  sad  at  having  received 
no  news  of  you.  I  fear  you  have  found  some  more  agree- 
able occupation  than  thinking  of  me.  I  do  all  I  can  to 
drive  away  such  thoughts,  but  I  love  you  too  fervently 
to  be  easy,  and  you  are  altogether  too  fascinating  for 
women  to  leave  you  alone.  They  will  do  their  best  to 
estrange  you  from  me.  Resist  their  allurements,  I  implore 
you,  and  come  back  to  me  as  tender  as  when  we  parted. 
The  memory  of  all  that  has  taken  place  between  us  forms 
my  only  joy  now  ;  indeed,  I  wish  for  no  other  while  you 
are  absent. 

"  They  say  the  Electress  of  Brandenburg  is  at  Luisburg.1 
If  so  I  shall  be  unable  to  avoid  going  there.  I  am  much 
vexed  about  it,  for  I  shall  have  to  be  always  with  her, 
when  my  only  pleasure  is  to  be  alone,  thinking  of  you.  I 
am  dying  to  see  you  with  your  beard.  I  would  give  my 
blood  to  be  two  hours  with  you.  But,  dear  God  !  I  must 
not  think  of  it  ;  that  is  what  distresses  me.  Never  leave 
me  again,  but  let  us  look  forward  to  that  happy  future 
when  we  shall  be  parted  no  more.  I  would  rather  brave 
everything  than  live  without  you.  Oh,  my  love,  my  love  ! 
all  the  misfortunes  of  the  world,  all  the  blame,  all  the 

1  "  Moltke  was  executed  on  Monday,  and  the  court  has  gone  to  Luis- 
burg  to  be  out  of  the  way." — Colt's  Despatches,  Hanover,  July  18,  1692. 
The  Electress  changed  her  mind. 


DOUBTS  AND  FEARS  197 

shame,  are  not  half  so  dreadful  to  contemplate  as  separa- 
tion from  you  ! " 

»  CELLE,  July  2- . 
J     ^30 

"  I  do  not  know  what  construction  to  put  upon  your 
silence ;  I  cannot  imagine  the  reason.  To-day  I  have 
received  another  letter  from  the  Prince :  I  am  piqued  to 
notice  that  he  is  more  regular  in  writing  than  you.  What 
has  become  of  your  eagerness  ?  Does  the  Brussels  air 
inspire  you  with  coldness  ?  Has  a  new  passion  entirely 
effaced  me  from  your  memory  ?  I  cannot  reassure  myself. 
You  have  no  good  excuse  for  your  neglect,  for  while  you 
are  with  the  army  you  can  write  at  any  moment,  but  you 
do  not.  Had  you  not  received  any  of  my  letters,  and  had 
I  not  received  any  of  yours,  I  might  think  that  knavish 
tricks  are  being  played  ;  but  as  that  is  not  so,  I  cannot 
delude  myself  any  longer.  I  have  written  to  you  so  regu- 
larly that  you  must  surely  see  my  only  pleasure  lies  in 
assuring  you  of  my  love  and  fidelity.  You  reply  so  irregu- 
larly that  I  fear  I  weary  you ;  pray  don't  force  yourself  to 
write  to  me  unless  you  can  do  so  with  a  good  heart.  No 
doubt  you  have  pleasanter  occupations,  and  I  would  not  be 
so  unkind  as  to  take  you  away  from  them.  I  wish  your 
inclination  to  govern  all  your  actions,  but  I  cannot  suit 
myself  to  everything  you  do  for  the  mere  sake  of  decorum. 
I  confess  I  am  piqued,  very  much  so,  at  your  indifference. 
I  try  to  excuse  you  as  much  as  possible,  but  I  cannot  find 
any  solution  of  the  riddle.  I  have  never  been  wounded  so 
sensibly  before.  But,  believe  me,  however  much  I  have 
reason  to  be  dissatisfied,  however  much  I  may  become 
indifferent  to  you,  I  will  not  fail  in  anything  I  have  prom- 
ised. Pray  let  me  know  if  you  consent  to  my  going  to 
Wiesbaden.  The  journey  is  almost  decided.  My  mother 
wishes  it  extremely,  and  she  is  writing  to-morrow  to  the 
Prince  to  ask  his  permission  for  me  to  go.  I  entreat  you, 
write  as  soon  as  you  possibly  can.  What  you  wish  shall 
be  done.  Farewell. 

"  I  wanted  to  finish  thus,  but  I  have  not  the  strength. 
I  take  up  my  pen  again  to  beg  you  to  come  back  to  me. 
Without  you  I  cannot  live ;  I  will  expose  myself  to  every- 
thing rather  than  lose  you.  See  how  low  you  bring  me ! 


198    THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

I  am  forced  to  believe  you  guilty,  however  much  I  wish  to 
think  you  innocent.     Yet  I  write  thus." 


,     . 
August  4 

"  This  is  the  third  post  and  still  no  letter  !  Surely  so 
tender  a  lover  as  you  always  seemed  to  be  cannot  have 
wholly  forgotten  me  —  or  are  we  betrayed?  It  positively 
must  be  one  thing  or  the  other.  The  suspense  is  so  acute 
that  I  have  not  a  moment's  peace.  But  my  great  fear  is 
that  you  have  changed.  I  think  of  nothing  else,  nor  of 
all  that  may  happen  to  me.  Is  it  possible  that  you  have 
forgotten  your  vows  of  eternal  fidelity  ?  I  strive  to  drive 
away  my  sad  thoughts,  but  I  am  in  such  abject  melancholy 
that  I  fear  it  is  a  foreboding  of  misfortune.  If  you  love 
me  no  longer  I  shall  never  be  comforted.  But  what  is  the 
use  of  telling  you  that?  You  know  it,  and  perhaps  the 
knowledge  has  not  prevented  you  from  becoming  unfaithful. 
Why  do  you  force  me  by  your  silence  to  believe  the  worst? 
I  have  not  deserved  this  coldness,  for  none  ever  loved  so 
tenderly  before.  If  I  receive  no  letter  from  you  by  the 
next  post  I  shall  no  longer  be  able  to  doubt.  What  plea- 
sure can  you  find  in  grieving  me  thus?  What  have  I  done 
to  be  treated  in  this  way?  Is  it  because  I  love  you  to 
madness  and  am  faithful  to  you  with  a  faithfulness  that 
nothing  will  ever  equal  ?  I  have  not  the  strength  to  say 
more,  for  I  am  writing  perchance  to  an  ungrateful  being, 
and  the  thought  is  death.  Farewell.  If  no  letters  come  by 
the  first  post  I  shall  risk  sending  a  note  by  Lenner,  for  if 
there  should  be  treachery  I  fear  that  you  have  received 
none  of  mine.  I  send  you  this  by  the  postmaster  here." 

Frdulein  von  Knesebeck  to  Konigsmarck. 

"  Mon  Dieu  !  what  does  it  mean  ?  Why  do  the  letters 
miscarry  so?  I  would  give  much  to  know  the  reason. 
Her  Highness  fears  that  you  have  become  unfaithful,  and 
though  I  keep  telling  her  the  contrary,  she  does  not  believe 
me.  All  my  fear  runs  on  treachery.  It  must  be  the  fault 
of  your  servants  ;  you  would  do  well  to  write  and  ask 
them  the  reason.  It  appears  they  forward  you  all  your 
letters.  If  the  others  fare  as  badly  as  these  it  will  comfort 
me,  but  if  you  receive  them  more  regularly  what  can  it 


DOUBTS  AND  FEARS  199 

mean  ?  Why  should  these  letters  be  so  long  on  the  road  ? 
Beware,  sir.  Do  not  neglect  to  find  out,  for  the  more  I 
think  of  it  the  more  anxious  I  become.  I  think  you  wrote 
in  one  of  your  letters  that  you  were  uneasy  about  the  seal 
which  I  put  inside  the  letter,  and  I  wrote  afterwards  that  I 
sealed  it  with  that.  All  this  makes  me  fear  that  the  letters 
have  been  opened,  and  that  they  have  taken  away  some- 
thing. You  have  also  written  to  Her  Highness  asking 
what  she  did  after  His  Highness  left.  She  told  you  every- 
thing, day  by  day ;  it  cannot  have  been  taken  out  of  the 
letters.  In  truth,  I  know  not  what  to  think.  I  am  half 
inclined  to  go  and  see  about  it  myself,  and  end  this  anxiety. 
In  the  last  letter,  I  wrote  to  you  to  send  me  an  answer  direct 
here ;  I  do  hope  you  addressed  the  letter  to  me  in  my  own 
name.  If  you  have  not  done  so  let  me  know,  so  that  I 
may  see  to  it. 

"L.  S."1 

Konigsmarck  to  the  Princess. 

"  WAVER.  August  — . 
24 

"  At  last  I  have  reached  the  pinnacle  of  bliss.  I 
received  five  of  your  letters  at  once,  but  I  see  by  the  last 
that  two  are  still  missing.  That  distresses  me,  for  I  do 
not  know  how  to  recover  them,  and  I  would  not  like  to 
lose  any  of  your  dear  letters,  they  comfort  me  too  much. 
You  cannot  imagine  what  joy  it  gives  me  to  find  you  are 
innocent.  I  humbly  beg  your  pardon  for  having  unjustly 
suspected  you.  I  am  greatly  grieved  about  it,  and  I  hope 
you  will  not  be  disgusted  with  me  altogether,  for  it  is 
because  I  love  you  so  much  that  these  fancies  come  to  me. 
Do  not  punish  me  as  I  deserve ;  I  have  been  punished 
enough  already  by  the  anguish  these  wicked  suspicions 
have  caused  me.  I  promise  you  to  have  no  more  of  them. 
What  can  I  do  to  show  you  my  gratitude  for  the  quiet  life 
you  are  leading  ?  If  my  eternal  love  suffices,  it  is  yours  ; 
if  you  desire  a  life  sans  peur  et  sans  reproche,  it  is  yours 
also.  Night  and  day,  day  and  night,  I  only  think  of  how 
to  please  you.  My  love  for  you  passes  passion  ;  I  will 
be  faithful  unto  death.  What !  I  suspected  you  of  incon- 

1  La  Sentinelle — one  of  the  pseudonyms  of  the  Fraulein  von  Knesebeck. 


200        THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

stancy.  Ah  !  base  am  I  !  You  have  shed  tears  for  love  of 
me.  Oh  !  dear  heart,  do  not  pain  those  lovely  eyes  ;  I  am 
not  worthy.  What  distresses  me  most  is  to  find  that  you 
are  more  reasonable  than  I,  for  you  tell  me  you  have  not 
received  my  letters,  and  you  attribute  this  to  the  neglect 
of  my  servants  at  Hanover.  You  are  right,  for  this  is  the 
eighth  I  have  written  to  you,  though  I  had  not  received 
any  from  you.  I  was  inclined  at  first  to  think  it  was  your 
fault,  without  considering  that  a  hundred  accidents  might 
have  hindered.  This  is  my  defect — my  weakness ;  but, 
dearest,  remember  it  springs  from  loving  you  so  much. 
I  am  very  glad  you  are  going  to  Wiesbaden.  I  am  so 
satisfied  with  your  conduct  that  you  might  go  to  Paris 
without  causing  me  any  anxiety.  I  am  glad  you  are  on 
such  good  terms  with  your  parents ;  this  time  you  should 
take  advantage  of  it,  for  there  are  moments  we  can  never 
recover.  ...  I  am  delighted  to  hear  that  you  find  Prince 
Max  sillier  than  ever ;  I  hope  he  will  never  again  salute 
you.  The  portrait  I  have  with  me  is  dearly  cherished ; 
you  need  not  fear  any  one  seeing  it,  for  I  guard  it  so  care- 
fully that  I  defy  the  cleverest  man  in  the  world  to  guess 
where  it  is.  My  pretty  heart,  you  say  in  one  of  your 
letters  that  perhaps  at  this  very  moment  I  am  dividing 
my  heart  with  others.  Yet  see  how  I  am  all  yours !  We 
have  been  for  six  days  only  four  leagues  from  Brussels 
without  my  having  thought  of  setting  my  foot  therein. 
Yesterday  there  was  a  great  feast  in  Brussels  called  the 
'  Feast  of  the  Miracle/  and  Monseigneur  1'Electeur l  and 
all  the  great  ones  and  generals  of  the  army  went  in  post- 
chaises  to  celebrate  it  ;  many  fair  ladies  were  there,  too. 
I  knew  of  it  soon  enough  to  have  gone ;  but  I  swear, 
my  dearest,  I  never  thought  of  going.  My  soldiers  went, 
and  they  could  not  praise  it  enough,  particularly  the  fair 
sex.  I  would  not  go  to  Brussels  at  all  if  I  were  not 
obliged  to  have  a  certain  bracelet  made  for  me,  of  which 
you  know,  and  a  copy  in  miniature  of  a  portrait  I  shall 
wear  for  ever  next  my  heart.  My  Lord  Portland  2  showed 

1  Probably  the  Elector  of  Bavaria. 

2  Hans  William  Bentinck,  first  Earl  of  Portland  and  ancestor  of  the 
present  Duke,  accompanied  William  of  Orange  to  England  as  confidential 
adviser,  who  created  him  Earl  of  Portland  in  1689.     He  was  in  command 
of  a  regiment  of  Dutch  Guards  at  the  battle  of  the  Boyne,  and  probably  held 


DOUBTS  AND  FEARS  201 

•me  much  friendliness,  and  assured  me  that  the  King  held 
me  in  esteem.  All  that  does  not  make  we  wish  to  better 
my  fortune.  No,  Beloved,  so  long  as  I  can  count  you  mine, 
I  wish  nothing  more ;  all  the  favours  of  kings  are  useless  to 
me.  The  King's  interview  with  our  Prince  was  very  dull, 
for  both  are  men  of  few  words.  Yesterday  the  Prince  went 
to  see  His  Majesty  in  his  camp.  I  did  not  go  in  his  suite  ; 
but  to-morrow  I  attend  him  to  the  Elector's,  and  I  will 
•give  you  an  account  of  that.  Prince  Frederick  Augustus 
of  Saxony  is  the  dupe  of  all ;  he  is  cheated  in  his  horses, 
and  money  is  won  from  him  at  cards ;  he  has  already  lost 
one  thousand  pistoles.  He  has  no  one  to  advise  him,  and 
is  being  ruined.  I  heard  to  day  that  Prince  Christian  is  to 
marry  the  widow  of  the  Duke  d'Arenburg." 

"  [On  the  i6th.] 

"  What  joy,  what  rapture,  what  delight  to  be  loved  by 
you  !  I  have  just  received  two  more  of  your  letters.  No, 
my  divinity,  I  will  not  exact  any  oaths  from  you ;  I  know 
you  well,  and  will  trust  you  and  believe  everything  you  tell 
me.  Your  devotion  shows  me  that  I  am  the  happiest  man 
in  the  world.  I  feel  so  happy ;  my  only  sorrow  is  that  we 
are  separated.  The  days  seem  weeks  to  me,  the  weeks  like 
months,  and  the  months  centuries  ;  and  when  I  think  that 
I  have  still  two  months  of  campaigning  to  go  through 
before  I  see  you,  I  despair,  and  pray  a  thousand  times  a 
day  that  I  may  be  wounded  in  the  fight,  and  so  have  a 
pretext  for  returning  to  Hanover — and  to  you.  I  am  so 
despondent  that  I  am  wasting  away  ;  and  what  grieves  me 
most  is  the  thought  that  when  you  see  me  again  you  will 
find  me  as  ugly  as  sin.  The  Elector  told  me  so  only  to-day, 
and  all  my  friends  find  me  so  pale  and  careworn  they 
scarcely  recognise  me.  Every  day  they  ask  me  if  I  am 
ill  ;  but  my  complaint  only  comes  from  loving  you.  Cruel 
little  one !  You  think  I  am  so  hasty  that  I  would  commit 
some  folly  on  the  strength  of  a  mere  suspicion  ;  but,  dearest, 
when  a  man  loves  as  I  love,  he  can  never  abandon  the 
woman  he  adores.  I  loved  you  through  it  all,  so  think  no 
more  about  it." 

the  same  commission  in  Flanders.  Colt  mentions  in  his  despatches  that 
Lord  Portland  was  with  King  William  at  Brussels  and  during  the  campaign. 


202        THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 
The  Princess  to  Konigsmarck. 


"  I,  too,  ask  your  pardon  for  all  my  unjust  suspicions  ; 
I  would  not  for  worlds  have  been  in  the  right.  I  am  at'a 
loss  for  words  to  express  my  joy  at  finding  you  still  so 
tender  ;  but,  indeed,  there  is  a  little  laziness  in  you,  and  it 
is  very  good  of  me  to  forgive  you  so  easily  for  the  three 
posts'  you  let  pass  without  writing.  Tell  me  what  hindered 
you  ;  I  should  like  to  know.  Find  me  a  good  excuse,  for, 
really,  your  neglect  rankles  in  my  heart.  I  am  greatly 
vexed  that  two  of  my  letters  are  lost,  for  if  they  reflect  at 
all  what  I  am  thinking,  it  will  not  be  difficult  to  guess  that 
they  are  written  by  me.  You  do  not  understand  what  I 
meant  to  say  about  the  portrait.  I  did  not  mean  to  speak 
of  mine,  for  I  am  sure  you  will  have  greater  care  for  all 
that  concerns  me  than  I  have  myself.  It  was  about  yours 
I  was  uneasy.  You  say  you  are  going  to  have  a  copy 
made  of  it  ;  for  whom  do  you  intend  that  copy  ?  I  thank 
you  for  giving  me  leave  to  go  to  Wiesbaden  ;  you  can  da 
so  without  any  risk,  for  I  so  belong  to  you  that  you  have 
nothing  to  fear.  All  the  same,  without  your  consent  I 
would  have  died  rather  than  have  gone,  for  my  only  desire 
is  to  please  you.  The  Duke  and  Duchess  [of  Hanover] 
have  written  to  me  the  kindest,  most  affectionate,  and 
politest  of  letters  concerning  the  journey.  I  do  not  know 
if  I  shall  be  able  to  receive  your  letters  as  quickly  as  if  I 
were  remaining  here  ;  I  hope  so,  for  they  are  my  only  joy 
and  comfort  —  the  least  delay  grieves  me  greatly. 

"It  was  so  thoughtful  of  you  not  to  go  to  Brussels, 
However,  do  not  restrain  yourself;  I  have  no  wish  to  be 
exigeante  so  long  as  you  cherish  me  in  your  memory.  I 
am  too  happy,  too  pleased  ;  but  keep  your  heart  whole  for 
me,  and  do  not  allow  any  one  to  divide  it.  I  am  delighted 
that  you  are,  for  once  in  your  life,  satisfied  with  me  ;  were 
you  reasonable  you  would  always  be  so,  for  all  I  do  goes  to 
prove  my  love  and  devotion.  I  do  not  know  what  you  are 
doing,  perhaps  very  often  thinking  of  me.  I  dream  of  you 
often,  and  with  infinite  pleasure,  thinking  I  am  with  you  ; 
then  I  awake  and  am  inconsolable  to  find  it  was  only  a 
dream.  I  cannot  delude  myself  into  thinking  the  vision 
may  soon  become  a  reality,  for  the  Prince  writes  to  me 


DOUBTS  AND  FEARS  zoj 

that  they  are  going  to  raise  the  siege  of  Namur.  What 
terrors  that  news  has  for  me !  Grand  Dieu !  I  think  of 
you  exposed  to  danger.  How  can  I  keep  calm  when  all 
that  I  love,  all  the  delight  of  my  life,  is  in  deadly  peril  ? 
I  offer  endless  prayers  for  you,  keeping  a  good  heart  while 
saying  them,  trying  to  believe  they  will  be  granted.  Fare- 
well." 


CHAPTER  XVI. 

THE  BATTLE  OF  STEINKIRK. 

I  have  loved  you  ;  yea,  when  I  rode  in  war 

Your  face  went  floated  in  among  men's  helms, 

Your  voice  went  through  the  shriek  of  slipping  swords. 

SWINBURNE,  Chastelard. 

"  I  OFFER  endless  prayers  for  you,"  writes  the  Princess  to 
her  lover.  He  had  need  of  them,  for  even  while  the  ink 
was  wet  Konigsmarck  was  righting  in  one  of  the  fiercest 
battles  of  the  century.  The  battle  of  Steinkirk  took  place 
on  August  3,  1692.  William  surprised  Luxemburg,  and 
began  the  attack  early  in  the  morning  while  it  was  yet 
dark,  and  at  first  it  seemed  that  he  would  succeed.  The 
French  general  was  off  his  guard,  but  with  consummate 
skill  he  checked  the  advance  of  the  Allies  and  called  up 
reinforcements.  All  day  long  the  battle  raged  without 
either  side  gaining  advantage  ;  the  fight  was  so  close  and 
desperate  that  the  muzzles  of  the  muskets  crossed.  In  the 
forefront  of  the  battle  were  the  British  troops,  commanded 
by  Count  Solmes,  an  incapable  Dutch  general.  Though 
faced  by  overwhelming  numbers,  they  would  not  yield  an 
inch,  and  five  fine  British  regiments  were  cut  to  pieces. 
Mackay's  division  of  Highlanders  was  simply  mown  down 
with  sword  and  bayonet.  No  wonder  that  afterwards  there 
arose  a  great  cry  in  England  that  English  soldiers  should 
henceforth  be  commanded  by  English  generals.  Had  it 
not  been  for  La  Hogue,  Steinkirk  would  have  cost  William 
of  Orange  his  English  crown. 

At  last,  night  drawing  on,  the  army  of  the  Allies  retired 
towards  Lambeque,  leaving  the  French  in  possession  of  the 
field.  The  French  lost  seven  thousand  men  killed  and 
wounded,  the  Allies  not  many  more ;  but  the  victory  was 
with  France.  The  French  rejoicing  at  this  barren  victory 
was  only  equalled  by  the  disgust  of  the  Allies  at  their 

204 


THE  BATTLE  OF  STEINKIRK  205 

defeat.  In  the  camp  at  Lambeque  all  was  disunion  and 
discontent ;  the  sudden  withdrawal  of  Prince  Frederick 
Augustus  of  Saxony  (though  Konigsmarck  puts  it  down 
to  gambling  debts)  was  due  as  much  to  political  as  personal 
reasons.  The  Hanoverian  contingent  was  held  in  reserve 
as  a  possible  reinforcement,  and  took  no  part  in  the  battle, 
a  forced  inaction  which  must  have  been  very  galling  to 
their  general,  Prince  George  Louis.  Konigsmarck  obtained 
leave  to  go  to  the  fight  as  a  volunteer,  and  attached  himself 
to  the  Prince  of  Wiirtemburg,  "following  him  everywhere 
in  the  battle".  The  troops  sent  by  the  Duke  of  Celle 
were  in  the  thick  of  the  fray  and  suffered  great  loss. 

The  disastrous  news  reached  Celle  within  two  days.  The 
little  court  was  plunged  into  mourning,  and  the  Princess 
was  in  agonies  of  grief  and  anxiety  lest  Konigsmarck 
should  be  numbered  among  the  slain.  In  the  general 
lamentation  her  emotion  passed  unnoticed,  or  was  put 
down  to  natural  uneasiness  about  her  husband.  Colt, 
who  was  then  at  Celle,  writes :  "  The  disappointment  is 
great  here,  when  by  the  news  they  had  received  last  post 
they  were  almost  confident  of  a  victory,  or  at  least  some 
considerable  advantage ;  but  now,  by  the  relation  they 
have  had  by  a  courier,  they  are  told  that  their  troops  have 
suffered  very  much,  and  many  of  their  officers  killed  and 
wounded.  Many  persons  are  in  great  trouble  at  the  loss 
of  their  friends." 1 

The  Princess  soon  received  tidings  of  her  lover's  safety, 
and  with  a  good  heart  proceeded  to  complete  her  arrange- 
ments for  the  trip  to  Wiesbaden  with  her  mother.  They 
were  interrupted  by  the  unwelcome  news  that  the  Electress 
of  Brandenburg  was  coming  to  pay  the  Duke  and  Duchess 
of  Hanover  a  visit  at  Luisburg,  and  Sophie  Dorothea  feared 
that  she  would  have  to  go  there  to  assist  in  the  festivities. 
"  I  dread  that  more  than  death."  she  writes,  thus  showing 
how  great  was  her  unhappiness  at  the  Hanoverian  court. 
But  her  fears  were  groundless. 

Konigsmarck's  letters  continue  to  be  written  from  the 
camp  at  different  places,  and  are  alternately  full  of  passion- 
ate love  and  violent  reproaches.  They  are  more  varied 
than  those  of  the  Princess  (which  are,  indeed,  so  full  of  her 

1  Colt's  Despatches,  Celle,  August,  1692. 


206    THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

love  as  to  leave  room  for  little  beside),  and  give  us  curious 
glimpses  of  contemporary  manners.  Konigsmarck  was  in 
high  favour  with  King  William,  the  Elector  of  Bavaria,  and 
many  of  the  princes  and  generals  of  the  campaign.  Un- 
doubtedly his  prospects  were  brilliant  if  he  had  cared  to 
profit  by  them  ;  but,  like  the  Princess,  he  was  ready  to 
sacrifice  everything  to  his  passion.  The  period  covered 
by  this  brief  introduction  is  August  and  September,  and 
the  correspondence  opens  with  the  reception  of  the  news 
of  the  battle  of  Steinkirk  at  Celle. 


The  Princess  to  Konigsmarck. 

"  [CELLE,]  ^-29-fl. 
)J  August  8 

"  I  learned  on  my  awakening  that  a  fearful  battle  had 
taken  place  and  you  were  in  it.  Imagine  my  agitation. 
It  was  noticed  by  every  one,  for  I  could  not  hide  my  feelings. 
I  am  in  inconceivable  anxiety.  I  cannot  sleep,  and  shall 
not  until  I  know  you  are  out  of  danger.  My  plight  is 
pitiful :  it  seems  to  me  that  every  gun  is  pointed  at  you  ; 
you  must  be  running  terrible  risks.  Grand  Dieu  !  if  any 
hurt  were  to  happen  to  you,  what  would  become  of  me? 
I  could  not  conceal  my  grief  nor  be  mistress  of  my  emotion  ; 
I  should  start  at  once  for  the  camp,  hasten  to  give  you  all 
necessary  care  and  attention,  and  never  leave  you  more. 
My  sufferings  are  intense.  I  know  you  have  been  going 
through  great  danger,  but  know  not  how  you  fare.  I 
shudder,  tremble,  and  am  overwhelmed  with  woe.  Do  not 
expose  me  to  such  fears  in  the  future — leave  me  no  more. 
If  it  be  true  that  you  love  me,  spend  the  rest  of  your  life 
with  me  ;  let  us  build  up  a  happiness  in  each  other  which 
none  can  shatter.  I  have  not  the  heart  to  write  more ;  I 
am  so  beside  myself  that  I  hardly  know  what  I  am  writing. 
You  have  caused  me  many  tears  since  you  went  away  ;  I 
fear  me  they  will  only  cease  to  flow  when  you  come  back, 
for  you  will  be  exposed  to  danger  all  through  the  campaign. 
I  hate  King  William,  who  is  the  cause  of  it  all ;  he  breaks 
my  heart  by  thus  risking  all  I  have  in  the  world.  Good- 
bye. Take  care  of  yourself.  Remember  my  life  is  fused 
with  yours ;  I  would  not  live  a  moment  were  you  to 
die." 


FACSIMILE.    OF    ONE    OK    THK    PRINCESS'S    LETTERS    TO    KOMGSMARCK. 

Photographed  from  the  original  manuscript  in  the  University  Library  at  Lund. 

This  letter  is  probably  written  at  the  Princess's  dictation  by  Knesebeck. 


THE  BATTLE  OF  STEINKIRK  207 

Kbnigsmarck  to  the  Princess. 

"FROM  THE  CAMP  NEAR  WAVERN. 

"  Here  I  am  again.  I  have  escaped  once  more.  Our 
troops  did  not  come  in  for  any  fighting,  but  I  did  for  I 
volunteered,  and  was  in  the  most  terrible  fire.  The  Prince 
of  Wurtemburg  will  bear  me  witness  that  I  followed  him 
everywhere  in  the  battle  ;  but  as  I  was  only  a  volunteer  I 
could  not  distinguish  myself,  and  that  grieves  me,  for  I  ran 
just  the  same  risk  as  if  I  had  been  ordered  to  the  front. 
The  Duke  of  Celle  has  lost  a  great  many  men.1  I  will  not 
tell  you  any  more  about  the  battle,  for  you  will  know 
enough  from  other  sources.  But,  dearest,  I  will  tell  you 
that  I  received,  while  marching,  your  letter  of  the  i8th, 
and  after  reading  it,  I  put  it  next  my  heart  and  kept 'it 
there  until  I  was  out  of  the  fight,  and  I  believe  it  was  your 
dear  letter  that  saved  my  life.  I  am  grateful  indeed  for 
the  talisman,  and  adore  you  more  than  ever,  since  you 
have  rendered  me  such  a  service.  Until  now,  dear  one, 
they  have  not  sought  to  tempt  me  from  you,  nor  have  I 
even  seen  a  woman  ;  if  I  had  she  would  have  made  no 
impression  upon  me. 

"  I  must  tell  you  of  the  precautions  I  took  about  your 
letters  on  the  eve  of  the  battle.  I  sealed  them  all,  with  the 
portrait,  in  a  packet,  and  gave  them  to  Daniell,  an  officer 
of  my  regiment,  with  strict  orders  to  burn  them  at  once  if 
I  were  killed.  But  joy !  I  can  still  read  them,  and  my 
eyes  will  have  the  pleasure  of  looking  into  yours. 

"  I  have  heard  from  Prince  Ernest  that  the  Electress 
fof  Brandenburg]  is  going  to  Luisburg,  and  therefore  I 
imagine  you  will  go  also  ;  but  pray  keep  to  your  strict  rule 
•of  conduct,  for  you  will  be  sure  to  find  there  some  of  your 
old  admirers,  who  will  try  to  win  your  good  graces.  The 
Electress  will  notice  it,  and  to  annoy  us  both  she  will  try 
to  entangle  you  in  a  flirtation  with  Le  Barbouilleur ; 2  but 
you  have  been  so  good  that  I  am  sure  you  will  continue  in 
the  same  path." 

1 "  This  Duke  here  is  really  very  much  troubled  for  the  loss  of  his  troops 
an  the  late  action." — Colt's  Despatch,  Celle,  August  5,  1692. 

2Le  Barbouilleur,  the  scribbler,  the  spoiler  of  paper.  He  must  have 
been  some  one  holding  high  office  at  the  court  of  Hanover. 


208    THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

"Ar  THE  CAMP  OF  HALLE  [undated]. 

"  I  have  only  now  received  your  twelfth  letter ;  it  was 
given  me  with  three  others.  You  cannot  fairly  accuse  me 
of  being  negligent,  and  it  grieves  me  that  you  should 
imagine  the  ladies  of  Brussels  might  hinder  me  from  paying 
you  due  attention.  Here  are  more  grievances  ;  but  I  forgive 
you,  for  of  course  you  were  unaware  that  I  had  not  set  foot 
there,  and  were  it  not  for  the  bracelet,  I  assure  you  I  should 
not  think  of  going  at  all.  Play  prevented  me  from  writing 
the  day  before  yesterday ;  and  there  I  am  in  fault  rather,, 
the  more  so  as  yesterday  I  could  not  write  because  of  the 
enemy  giving  an  alarm  ;  otherwise,  my  dear  one,  I  should 
never  have  missed  writing.  Your  letters  were  a  great 
comfort  to  me ;  they  came  very  a  propos,  for  I  got  them 
when  I  came  back  from  the  King's  tent,  where  I  had  lost 
a  thousand  pistoles,  and,  as  that  is  a  considerable  sum,  it 
was  vexing  me  not  a  little,  but  your  dear  letters  made  me 
forget  my  trouble.  Still  I  found  in  one  of  them  something 
which  tells  me  that  if  I  were  the  man  to  break  my  vows 
you  would  easily  be  consoled.  You  are  certainly  very 
complaisant  when  you  say  :  '  I  fear  that  I  weary  you.  Pray 
don't  force  yourself  to  write  to  me  unless  you  can  do  so- 
with  a  good  heart.  No  doubt  you  have  pleasanter  occupa- 
tions, and  I  would  not  be  so  unkind  as  to  take  you  away 
from  them.'  If  I  were  such  a  traitor  as  to  change  you 
ought  to  be  grieved,  and  not  beg  me  to  divert  myself,  and 
not  to  restrain  myself.  But  surely  you  did  not  mean  it. 
It  was  anger  that  made  you  write  thus.  It  is  strange  that 
you  should  not  have  received  any  of  my  letters.  This  is 
the  fifth  I  have  written  to  you  from  this  camp,  and  I  have 
not  missed  a  post  except  the  two  before  mentioned.  I 
would  scold  you  much  were  I  not  in  the  same  plight  as 
yourself;  yet  /  have  never  prayed  you  to  write  to  me  no- 
more.  That  shocks  me  much  in  your  letter,  and  twenty 
times  at  least  I  have  thrown  down  my  pen  as  I  thought  of 
the  wrong  you  do  me.  But  I  cannot  better  pass  my  time 
than  in  writing  to  you,  though  it  be  always  in  a  strain  of 
complaint.  I  have  received  a  letter  to-day  from  my  agent 
at  Antwerp,  but  without  enclosing  any  from  you  ;  that  adds 
to  my  sadness,  for  my  only  comfort  is  in  reading  your  letters. 
I  have  little  enough  of  it,  for  the  whole  of  your  letters  I 
have  received  since  I  left  Hanover  could  be  read  in  half  ant 


THE  BATTLE  OF  STEINKIRK  209 

hour.  I  often  find  comfort  in  sitting  before  your  portrait, 
and  if  it  could  speak  to  you  on  my  return  it  would  tell  of 
the  passion  with  which  I  gaze  on  it  for  hours  together,  how 
often  it  brings  tears  to  my  eyes,  how  often  I  sigh,  '  Ah  ! 
man  Dieu  ! '  and,  '  Oh  !  what  joy  for  me  to  die  ! '  I  swear, 
my  charming  pet,  that  all  the  day  long  I  speak  to  no  one ; 
I  only  think  of  you,  and  often  in  the  night  your  vision  rises 
before  my  eyes.  ...  If  you  remain  true  to  me  you  will 
no  doubt  make  me  turn  into  a  sober  citizen  of  Hanover, 
for,  after  all,  one  only  seeks  to  be  happy,  and  how  could  I 
be  happier  than  in  possessing  you  wholly  and  solely.  There 
is  a  rumour  here  that  we  shall  attack  Mons ;  if  that  be  so, 
keep  the  'Festa'.  If  you  are  true  to  me,  pray  for  me, 
besiege  Heaven  with  prayers  and  vows ;  but  if  you  are  not 
true,  then  do  not  pray  for  me,  for  I  would  rather  find  my 
grave  there — though,  however  untrue  you  might  be,  I  would 
give  much  to  see  you  again. 

"In  a  previous  letter  I  told  you  that  there  were  very  few 
distinguished-looking  men  in  the  train  of  the  King  or  the 
Elector ;  but  if  I  had  seen  the  Duke  of  Richmond,1  son  of 
the  Duchess  of  Portsmouth,  sooner,  I  should  not  have  said 
so,  for  he  is  the  most  charming  youth.  He  unites  to  per- 
fect manners  an  air  of  great  distinction  ;  he  is  well  made, 
and  has  a  handsome  face  and  fine  eyes.  I  only  hope  he 
may  not  become  my  rival  ;  he  is  such  a  good-looking  boy 
that  if  I  were  not  sure  of  your  constancy  my  chances  would 
be  very  poor. 

"  You  ask  if  any  woman  has  tempted  me  to  forget  you. 
I  vow  that  since  I  left  Hanover  I  have  not  gone  astray. 
My  health  is  poor,  but  before  I  see  you  again  I  hope  to  be 
in  such  perfect  condition  that  you  may  command  me  as 
you  will.  I  go  on  my  knees  before  your  portrait  and 
exclaim,  '  I  pray  your  pardon  for  my  wicked  suspicions.  I 
see  that  I  greatly  wronged  you,  and  am  waiting  for  my 
sentence  ;  it  could  not  be  hard  enough  for  me  to  deserve.' 

"  The  Prince  allowed  me  to  leave  my  regiment  and  go 
to  the  battle,  With  an  order  to  come  back  soon  ;  but  as  I 
was  in  the  thick  of  it  I  did  not  return  in  a  hurry.  When 

1  Charles  Lennox,  illegitimate  son  of  King  Charles  II.  by  Louise  de 
Querouaille,  Duchess  of  Portsmouth,  was  created  Duke  of  Richmond  in 
1675,  and  is  ancestor  of  the  present  Duke.  He  was  born  in  1672,  and  would 
therefore  be  in  his  twenty-first  year  at  this  time. 


zio   THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

all  was  over  he  said  to  me,  '  You  were  away  a  very  long 
time,'  but  he  said  it  very  nicely.  I  went  to  dine  with  him 
yesterday,  and  found  him  as  usual." 

The  Princess  to  Kbnigsmarck . 

"  [CELLE,]  August  — • 

"  What  joy  to  know  that  you  are  out  of  danger  !  One 
must  love  as  I  love  to  feel  as  I  feel.  I  passed  two  days 
and  nights  in  mortal  anguish  ;  no  one  ever  suffered  so 
much.  And  now  two  of  your  letters  come  at  the  same 
time.  I  am  overjoyed  with  them,  for  you  assure  me  that 
you  are  pleased  with  me  and  I  need  fear  nothing  on  the 
score  of  your  constancy.  But  I  love  you  so  dearly  that  I 
needs  must  scold  you  for  having  exposed  yourself  to  un- 
necessary danger.  What  have  I  done  that  you  should 
treat  me  so  lightly?  Ought  you  not  guard  yourself  for  me? 
I  should  be  grieved  were  you  to  risk  your  honour,  but  I 
cannot  forgive  you  for  doing  rash  things  like  a  foolish  boy  ; 
I  entreat  and  implore  you  do  not  commit  any  more  of  such 
follies.  What  would  become  of  me  were  I  to  lose  you? 
Do  you  never  think  that  my  life  is  bound  up  with  yours, 
and  I  would  not  live  a  moment  if  you  were  to  be  killed  ? 
I  hope  the  campaign  will  soon  end,  for  if  they  are  going  to 
attempt  anything  fresh  I  shall  die  of  terror  lest  some  hurt 
befall  you.  I  don't  know  what  the  Elector  [of  Bavaria] 
could  have  been  about  with  his  eyes  to  have  thought  you 
'  as  ugly  as  sin '.  Had  he  seen  you  with  mine  he  would 
have  found  you  the  most  charming  and  the  handsomest  of 
men.  No  one  can  dispute  the  palm  with  you,  and  however 
many  wonderful  things  you  may  tell  me  about  the  Duke  of 
Richmond,  I  am  sure  he  must  pale  in  comparison  with  you. 
You  would  have  no  reason  to  fear  him  were  he  to  '  become 
your  rival,'  for  he  would  only  pave  the  way  for  your  triumph. 
Neither  he  nor  any  man  in  the  world  could  please  me  after 
you.  I  could  pay  you  any  number  of  compliments  of  this 
sort,  but  I  fear  to  offend  your  modesty,  so  I  will  stop. 

"  The  Electress  of  Brandenburg  will  not  come  for  some 
time,  and  I  shall  be  gone  before  she  arrives.  Our  escort 
on  the  journey  are  not  dangerous.  You  may  rest  easy : 
they  are  only  my  mother's  two  pages  and  Verfuy.  When 
we  meet  you  will  find  me  more  faithful  and  loving  than 


THE  BATTLE  OF  STEINKIRK  211 

ever ;  be  the  same,  I  implore  you.  Let  me  thank  you  for 
taking  such  precautions  concerning  my  letters  and  portrait ; 
but  they  were  unnecessary,  for  had  you  fallen,  my  grief 
would  have  discovered  everything.  I  should  not  have  had 
the  strength  to  restrain  myself;  and,  indeed,  it  would  have 
been  immaterial  to  me  whether  I  was  lost  or  not,  for  with- 
out you  life  would  be  intolerable,  and  imprisonment  within 
four  walls  pleasanter  than  to  go  on  living  in  the  world.1 
Thank  God,  I  am  now  free  from  such  sad  thoughts,  and  I 
make  many  prayers  not  to  come  again  to  such  straits. 

"  All  the  court  to-night  complimented  me  on  my  cheer- 
fulness. The  fools  thought  the  Prince  was  the  cause  of  it  ; 
but,  to  tell  the  truth,  I  have  not  once  thought  about  him. 
I  cannot  tell  you  the  delight  I  feel  because,  at  last,  you  are 
pleased  with  me.  Let  it  be  so  always  ;  and  the  more  you 
know  me  the  more  you  will  love  me.  The  love  I  bear  you 
will  last  till  death,  and  all  the  powers  of  the  universe  will 
never  part  us.  If  you  could  peep  into  my  heart  at  this 
moment  and  behold  the  confusion  you  cause  there,  you 
would  be  satisfied.  You  are  fascinating,  loving,  faithful — 
what  can  woman  wish  for  more  ?  My  happiness  is  beyond 
compare,  and  I  have  only  one  wish  left  in  the  world — to  see 
you  soon.  Would  you  were  with  me  at  this  very  moment ! 
When  once  I  hold  you  again  I  will  never  let  you  go.  Good- 
night. It  is  late.  I  am  fain  to  end,  though  I  have  so  many 
more  things  to  say  that  my  words  will  never  tarry.  Be  all 
mine,  I  implore  you.  As  for  me,  I  live  only  for  you.  I  am 
grieved  that  you  are  not  in  good  health.  I  thank  you  for 
the  care  you  take  of  yourself,  and,  though  I  am  surprised 
at  it,  I  am  grateful,  as  I  ought  to  be.  Good-bye. 

"  I  cannot  end.  I  take  so  much  delight  in  writing  to  you 
that  I  could  spend  the  whole  night  at  it.  La  Confidente  is 
going  to  sleep  ;  I  must  send  her  to  bed.  Love  me  as  I  love 
you.  I  am  too  happy  for  words." 

"[CELLE,]  August  5-. 

"  My  mother,  who  has  just  left  me,  tells  me  it  is  quite 
true  there  will  be  another  battle.  If  I  had  not  been  in  bed 
she  would  have  noticed  the  shock  her  news  gave  me  ;  I 

1  In  view  of  subsequent  events  this  is  almost  prophetic. 
I4* 


212    THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

have  not  got  over  it  yet.  Again  I  am  in  mortal  terror, 
and  can  only  write  of  my  sorrow  to-day.  It  is  agonising  to 
think  of  your  being  perpetually  exposed  to  danger.  Am  I 
destined  to  sorrow  all  my  life  ?  Shall  I  never  be  able  to 
taste  quietly  the  joys  of  loving  and  being  loved  ?  I  long 
for  news  of  you  on  the  morrow.  I  shall  spend  a  sleepless 
night. 

"  My  father  and  mother  have  just  interrupted  me.  I 
was  writing  this  letter,  and  it  was  all  I  could  do  to  hide  it  ; 
it  would  have  astonished  them  if  they  had  seen  it.  They 
are  very  considerate  and  kind,  but  are  always  preaching  to 
me  to  behave  properly  to  the  Prince.  My  father  will  not 
hear  any  jokes  or  ridicule  at  his  expense,  and  therefore  I 
do  not  speak  to  him  as  much  as  I  should  otherwise  do.  If 
you  only  knew  how  weary  I  am,  you  would  never  have  the 
cruelty  to  leave  me  again.  But  I  must  not  think  of  this  ; 
I  must  make  up  my  mind  to  divide  your  heart  with  your 
love  of  glory.  You  have  all  mine.  There  is  no  room  in 
it  for  any  one  or  anything — the  desire  to  please  you  fills  it 
entirely.  I  love  you  far  more  than  you  love  me.  Farewell. 
It  is  my  desire  to  become  an  example  of  the  tenderest  love, 
the  most  perfect  constancy,  that  ever  existed  since  the  world 
began. 

"L Envoi. — I  have  just  received  your  letter.  I  deserve 
to  be  scolded,  it  is  true  ;  but  how  can  I  guard  my  words 
when  I  fear  losing  you,  when  I  love  you  to  madness  ?  I 
would  rather  die  over  and  over  again  than  cease  to  be  loved 
by  you.  You  are  right  in  thinking  it  was  anger  made  me 
write  the  words  that  wounded  you  :  I  cannot  be  reasonable 
when  I  love  so  passionately.  I  will  write  to  you  fully  to- 
morrow. I  have  no  time  to  say  more  now,  as  my  father  is 
coming  to  take  me  to  a  '  bull-bait,' l  the  same  as  they  have 
in  England.  It  is  not  necessary  for  me  to  assure  you  again 
that  I  shall  never  change.  If  there  be  any  vows  left  I  would 
sign  them  with  my  heart's  blood." 

1  Bull-baiting  was  a  popular  pastime  in  England  during  the  sixteenth  and 
seventeenth  centuries,  patronised  by  royalty  and  persons  of  rank.  Queen 
Elizabeth  gave  one  in  honour  of  the  French  ambassadors  in  1559,  and  the 
Queen  and  the  ambassadors  greatly  enjoyed  "  the  sport  ".  This  barbarous 
pastime  was  also  practised  as  late  as  the  reign  of  Queen  Anne,  and  was  very 
popular,  too,  in  market  towns  and  rural  villages.  But  these  bull-baitings 
drew  such  a  mob  of  low  and  dissipated  persons  together  that  they  -were  at 
last  abolished  in  the  interests  of  the  public  peace. 


THE  BATTLE  OF  STEINKIRK  213 

Konigsmarck  to  the  Princess. 

"  HALLE,  August. 

"  I  again  asked  your  pardon  for  all  I  wrote  in  haste.  I 
missed  the  post  twice  (not  three  times,  as  you  say)  for  good 
and  sufficient  reasons.  Still,  I  ought  to  have  left  all  to  acquit 
myself  of  my  duty  to  you.  My  dear,  I  own  my  fault,  so  I 
hope  you  will  forgive  me  ;  I  will  not  neglect  writing  another 
time.  .  .  .  You  make  fun  of  me  when  you  say  that  I  took 
away  a  copy  of  my  likeness.  I  swear  that  I  never  did  such 
a  thing.  I  went  yesterday  to  Brussels  to  have  the  bracelet 
and  the  portrait  made,  but  for  nothing  else.  Prince  Christian 
and  several  other  of  my  friends  wanted  me  to  go  to  the 
Assembly.  I  refused,  and  went  for  a  walk.  I  saw  La 
Reingrave,  La  Delvassine,1  and  other  ladies,  but  they  were 
so  dull  and  unattractive  that  I  mounted  my  horse  and  rode 
back  to  the  camp.  Indeed,  my  dearest,  I  find  those  ladies 
hideous  now,  though  they  pass  for  the  handsomest  in 
Brussels.  What  are  they  compared  to  you  ?  Two  years 
ago  I  thought  them  passable,  but  now  I  am  astonished  at 
my  bad  taste.  They  are  as  pale-faced  and  sickly  as  if  they 
had  had  the  fever ;  pallor  is  very  fashionable  in  Brussels. 

"  How  sweet  is  that  part  of  your  letter  in  which  you  say 
that  if  an  accident  had  befallen  me  you  would  have  hastened 
to  my  side  and  have  never  left  me  more !  Why  wasn't  I 
riddled  with  bullets  ?  Why  couldn't  those  cowardly  French- 
men catch  me?  We  are  going  to  undertake  something  again 
soon,  and  then  I  will  face  the  fire,  and  with  intrepid  courage 
brave  the  enemy.  I  will  seek  the  most  perilous  places,  and 
if  I  get  wounded  I  shall  hope  to  see  you,  hold  you  in  my 
arms,  and  tell  you  how  dearly  I  love  you. 

"  I  hear  that  your  father  is  going  to  Luisburg  ;  if  so,  you 
will  probably  be  one  of  the  party.  Pray  tell  me  your  plans, 
for  I  know  not  where  to  write,  nor  when  to  see  you.  They 
say  our  troops  will  be  quartered  at  Louvain  or  Dist ;  in 
that  case  I  shall  be  nearer  you.  If  your  mother  were  still 
away  at  Wiesbaden,  I  might  hope  to  see  you  without  its 
being  known  ;  but  what  1  fear  most  is  that  the  court  of 
Celle  will  be  at  EpsdorfT.  In  that  event  I  shall  lose  patience, 
for  you  will  be  there  a  long  time,  and  what  shall  I  do  at 
Hanover  without  you  ?  I  must  tell  you  an  ugly  story  about 

1  Two  beauties  of  Brussels. 


214   THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

the  Duke  of  Richmond  ;  he  was  giving  a  party  to  Duke 
Frederick  of  Saxony  and  some  women.1  ...  I  have  altered 
my  good  opinion  of  him.  Duke  Frederick  has  promised 
me  to  come  to  the  next  carnival  at  Hanover,  and  you  can 
easily  guess  why  I  press  him.  Is  it  to  make  me  happy  or 
unhappy  ?  I  say  no  more.  Monsieur  Kielmansegge  is  very 
anxious  to  go  back  to  Hanover,  and  if  His  Highness  asks 
it  of  the  Duke  they  will  allow  him.  I  give  you  this  piece 
of  news  as  I  am  sure  it  will  please  you.  .  .  .  The  Electress 
of  Brandenburg  is  sending  me  compliments  through  Prince 
Ernest.  I  don't  know  what  she  means  ;  perhaps  she  wishes 
to  become  your  rival.  How  we  should  laugh  at  her  !  Fare- 
well, dear  heart." 

The  Princess  to  Konigsmarck. 

"[CELLE,]  August   ->. 

"  /  could  not  have  carelessly  allowed  three  posts  to  go 
by  without  sending  any  news  to  you,  and  when  one  loves  to 
madness  it  is  hard  to  be  calm.  I  crave  your  pardon  for  all 
I  wrote  that  has  displeased  you  ;  you  are  right  to  attribute 
it  to  anger.  Had  you  forgotten  me,  whatever  I  may  have 
said,  I  could  not  have  borne  it  quietly,  for  I  claim  you  as 
all  mine.  I  would  stand  up  for  you  against  the  world. 
Pardon  me,  then  ;  for  what  I  wrote  only  came  from  excess 
of  love. 

"  I  am  not  astonished  at  Duke  Frederick's  indiscretion  ; 
it  is  so  common  to  all  men  that  I  think  you  are  the  only 
one  exempt  from  it.  I  should  like  to  know  whether  you 
are  not  a  little  angry  about  La  Marionette's  complacency  ; 
it  takes  a  good  deal  off  the  price  of  the  favours  she  granted 
you.  I  felt  a  malicious  joy  with  regard  to  that  adventure. 
Put  it  against  my  account.  I  should  much  like  to  know 
what  she  says  about  Ferdi.'2  The  Prince  has  answered  my 
mother  about  my  going  with  her  to  Wiesbaden  ;  he  leaves 
everything  to  the  Duke,  and  says  neither  yea  nor  nay.  He 
tells  me  the  same  thing,  so  we  shall  start  in  two  days  from 
now.  I  have  already  told  you  the  Duke  is  quite  agreeable. 

1  This  anecdote  is  unfit  for  publication. 

2  Ferdi,  i.e.,  Ferdinand,  the  favourite  musician  of  the  Electress  of  Branden- 
burg, a  violinist. 


THE  BATTLE  OF  STEINKIRK  215 

My  father  stays  here,1  and  Max  is  going  to  visit  the  Electress 
of  Brandenburg  ;  she  will  not  come  just  yet.  Since  you  don't 
wish  me  to  go  anywhere  except  to  Wiesbaden,  I  will  avoid 
Frankfort,  and  will  try  all  I  can  to  prevent  my  mother  from 
going.  She  has  determined  to  take  me  herself,  or  send  me 
there  to  see  the  fair  ;  but  I  will  give  it  up,  for  I  wish  all  my 
actions  to  mark  my  love  and  show  my  desire  to  please  you. 
I  will  write  to  your  sister  '2  and  tell  her  of  our  journey.  I 
have  not  done  so  before  because  it  was  not  settled,  but  I 
fear  it  will  be  too  late  for  her  to  join  us.  You  were  not 
wise  to  wish  her  to  keep  watch  over  me.  If  I  wished  to 
deceive  you,  neither  she  nor  anybody  could  prevent  me. 
But  let  your  mind  be  at  rest ;  I  would  rather  die  a  hundred 
deaths  than  suffer  the  thought  to  cross  my  mind. 

"  I  could  not  finish  my  letter  this  afternoon.  I  had  to 
make  some  visits  with  my  mother,  and  on  coming  home 
I  learned  that  the  Electress  of  Brandenburg  will  be  at 
Luisburg  next  week  ;  she  has  already  sent  a  list  of  her 
suite,  so  no  doubt  she  is  coming.  I  am  vexed  about  it,  for 
I  was  looking  forward  to  going  to  Wiesbaden — more  for 
the  purpose,  I  assure  you,  of  shunning  the  world  than  of 
seeking  it.  I  am  uncertain  what  will  happen  now.  I  may 
be  compelled  to  go  to  Luisburg,  and  I  dread  that  more 
than  death.  The  Electress  will  be  sure  to  spy  on  me, 
cross-question  me,  and  watch  all  my  actions,  and  she  will 
find  me  so  different  from  what  I  used  to  be  that  she  will 
guess  the  reason.  Never  mind,  this  is  the  least  of  my  cares. 
Prince  Max  is  going  the  day  after  to-morrow  to  meet  her 
and  will  accompany  her  to  Luisburg.3  If  I  do  not  receive 
any  letters  commanding  me  to  stay,  I  shall  start  on  Tuesday." 

Konigsmarck  to  the  Princess. 

"  HALLE  [undated]. 

"  So  far  from  forgetting  you,  I  only  think  of  you,  and  I 
study  all  possible  means  of  seeing  you  again.  To  that  end 

1 "  This  court  will  the  next  week  remove  from  hence  :  the  Duke  to  follow 
his  hunting,  and  the  Duchess  goes  to  Wiesbaden,  near  Mayence,  for  her 
health." — Colt's  Despatch,  Celle,  August  5,  1692. 

'2The  Countess  Aurora,  who  was  then  at  Hanover.  Many  of  the  letters 
passed  through  her  hands,  though  they  were  sometimes  sent  direct. 

3  "  The  Electress  of  Brandenburg  is  passing  by  here  on  her  way  to 
Luisburg,  where  the  Hanoverian  court  is  at  a  country  house." — Colt's  De- 
spatch, Celle,  August  12,  1692. 


2i6   THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

I  arranged  with  Monsieur  de  Goritz,  if  the  battle  had  been 
victorious  to  us,  to  have  borne  the  good  news  to  our  court, 
and  so  perhaps  to  have  had  the  joy  of  seeing  and  embracing 
you  ;  but,  my  dear  angel,  Fortune  did  not  favour  my  plan. 
All  these  accidents  about  the  letters  make  me  wretched. 
I  am  grieved  at  your  anxiety  on  that  account,  but  you 
accuse  me  unjustly,  and,  in  turn,  I  claim  you  will  ask  my 
pardon  as  I  did  yours." 

The  Princess  to  Konigsmarck. 

o 

"[CELLE,]  August  —-• 

"  I  should  have  died  with  joy  if  you  had  come  as  you 
thought  of  doing ;  and,  though  you  did  not  come,  I  am 
grateful  to  you  for  having  had  the  thought.  I  am  so  ab- 
sorbed in  my  love  that  I  am  becoming  insensible  to  every- 
thing else  ;  nothing  can  please  me  but  to  see  you  again  and 
spend  my  life  with  you  :  as  long  as  that  cannot  be,  I  shall 
always  be  wretched.  I  have  already  asked  your  pardon 
for  the  wrong  I  did  you  ;  I  do  it  again,  since  you  wish  me. 
I  am  delighted  to  be  wrong,  and  I  only  wish  I  had  always 
been  so  mistaken.  I,  too,  know  a  prison  waiting  for  my 
prisoner  with  great  impatience.  If  I  told  you  all  my 
troubles,  all  my  sorrows,  I  should  make  you  weep.  My 
trip  will  last  six  or  seven  weeks.  I  hope  we  shall  both 
return  [to  Hanover]  about  the  same  time.  I  must  not  see 
you  the  first  time  in  public :  my  emotion  would  betray  me. 
They  still  say  there  will  be  a  second  battle ;  it  makes  me 
tremble.  I  have  not  slept  for  many  nights,  and  am  rather 
unwell.  I  think  it  comes  from  loving  you  overmuch,  but 
that  is  such  a  sweet  sickness  I  do  not  wish  to  be  cured.  I 
will  write  to  you  as  often  as  I  possibly  can,  but  do  not 
blame  me  if  you  do  not  get  my  letters. 

"  I  leave  to-morrow.  The  Duchess  Sophia  has  just 
written  to  my  mother  to  say  the  Electress  is  coming,  but 
as  she  wishes  me  a  pleasant  journey  I  no  longer  fear 
having  to  remain." 


CHAPTER  XVII. 

THE  VISIT  TO  WIESBADEN. 

Why  now  do  pangs  of  torment  clutch  thy  heart, 
Which  with  thy  love  should  make  thee  overjoyed  ? 

DANTE  GABRIEL  ROSSETTI. 

THE  Electress  of  Brandenburg  did  not  go  to  Luisburg 
after  all.  Elaborate  preparations  had  been  made  for  her 
reception,  for  Duke  Ernest  Augustus  was  anxious  to  gain 
his  powerful  son-in-law's  support  for  the  coveted  Electorate, 
and  so  wished  to  treat  his  daughter  with  special  honour. 
But  the  Elector  of  Brandenburg  hung  back,  and  at  the 
eleventh  hour  the  Electress  changed  her  plans,  to  the  great 
chagrin  of  her  parents.  By  this  time  Princess  Sophie 
Dorothea  was  well  on  her  way  to  Wiesbaden,  where  she 
stayed  with  her  mother  for  some  weeks.  Before  returning 
to  Hanover  she  visited  the  Frankfort  fair.  Frankfort  was 
•even  then  a  place  of  considerable  importance,  and  the 
annual  fair  was  a  carnival  to  which  all  the  great  world 
flocked  from  far  and  wide.  It  was  very  natural  for  the 
Princess  to  wish  to  see  it  when  she  was  so  near,  and  she 
hardly  merited  Konigsmarck's  reproaches  for  going.  She 
writes  to  her  lover  en  route  to  Wiesbaden  : — 

"  ElMBECK,1  August  —  . 

"  I  am  writing  haphazard  ;  but  I  cannot  exist  any  longer 
without  assuring  you  that  I  love  you,  and  absence  only  in- 
creases my  passion.  I  am  not  telling  you  everything  that 
has  happened  every  day,  for  I  fear  my  letter  might  be  lost, 
and  then  all  the  different  places  I  should  have  to  name 
would  disclose  everything.  I  will  send  you  a  list  when  I 
arrive,  if  anything  worth  mentioning  takes  place.  I  think 
of  you  from  morning  to  night ;  it  is  my  only  occupation 

1  Eimbeck,  a  little  town  on  the  road,  in  Grubenhagen. 

217 


2i 8    THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

and  pleasure.  I  am  so  delighted  to  think  I  am  getting 
nearer  the  time  when  we  shall  meet  again.  I  have  no  end 
of  dreams  concerning  that  meeting ;  they  are  pleasant, 
though  impossible.  I  am  told  you  are  losing  money  at 
play.  I  am  grieved,  but  one  cannot  be  lucky  in  everything  ; 
your  gains  in  love  must  console  you  for  your  losses  at  cards. 
I  hope  you  will  return  [to  Hanover]  about  the  same  time 
as  I  do." 

"  [WIESBADEN,]  August  — . 

"  I  reached  here  last  night  after  twelve  days'  journeyr 
which  seemed  as  many  centuries,  because  I  could  not  hope 
to  have  news  of  you  while  we  were  travelling.  I  am  hunger- 
ing for  your  letters,  and  hoping  that  I  shall  have  some 
to-morrow.  Nothing  took  place  on  the  journey  worth 
mentioning,  nor  did  I  see  a  face  worth  remembering.  I 
did  nothing  but  eat,  drink,  and  sleep,  and  I  played  cards 
sometimes  with  my  mother.  It  is  hardly  worth  while  to 
send  you  an  account  of  what  I  did  every  day,  and,  besides, 
as  I  said  before,  I  should  have  to  name  the  different  places 
I  passed  through,  and  that  might  reveal  everything.  The 
prudent  Confidente  advises  me  to  do  nothing  of  the  kind  ; 
but  if  you  do  not  trust  me,  I  will  send  a  list,  in  spite  of 
all.  We  are  alone  ;  the  house  is  like  a  convent,  and  there 
is  no  one  here  but  ourselves,  so  you  can  be  at  rest.  But  if 
tout  le  monde  were  here  you  would  have  nothing  to  fear  : 
I  am  yours  only.  I  wrote  you  once  on  the  journey ;  I  am 
sorry  I  could  not  do  so  oftener.  About  a  league  from 
Wiesbaden  a  courier  came  to  me  with  a  letter  from  La 
Marionette.1  I  am  sending  you  a  copy  of  it,  and  of  another 
which  she  enclosed  from  her  brother,  who  is  with  the  army. 
I  am  much  surprised  at  their  contents.  I  don't  know  what 
object  the  little  woman  has  in  worrying  me,  for  I  have 
never  thought  of  her  or  her  brother.  Perhaps  she  wishes 

1  La  Marionette  was  a  German  princess,  probably  a  princess  of  Hesse. 
The  mention  of  her  brother  being  "  with  the  army"  refers  not  to  the  cam- 
paign in  Flanders,  but  to  the  fact  that  on  the  Upper  Rhine,  and  along  the 
frontier  which  separates  France  from  Piedmont,  there  was  a  desultory  war 
being  carried  on  in  connection  with  the  Palatinate.  The  letters  mentioned 
are  two,  one  from  La  Marionette,  commending  her  brother  to  the  Princess 
and  expressing  a  hope  of  meeting  at  the  Frankfort  fair,  and  the  letter  enclosed 
from  her  brother,  containing  extravagant  expressions  of  his  admiration  of 
Sophie  Dorothea. 


THE  VISIT  TO  WIESBADEN  219 

me  to  come  to  harm,  so  that  she  may  have  you  all  to  her- 
self; but  she  mustn't  think  she  has  to  deal  with  a  fool  who 
gives  herself  away  to  the  first  man  who  comes  along,  as  she 
does.  My  love  for  you  is  the  joy  and  happiness  of  my  life, 
the  only  love  I  have  ever  felt  for  any  one ;  it  will  die  with 
me. 

"  The  Prince  writes  to  me  that  another  battle  will  shortly 
take  place.  Think  of  the  sorrow  his  news  causes  me,  for 
my  life  is  bound  up  with  yours.  I  hope  God  will  answer 
the  prayers  I  make  for  you  ;  I  say  them  with  a  pure  heart : 
you  make  me  quite  devout.  You  are  right  in  saying  that 
it  is  misery  to  live  absent  from  the  loved  one.  I  experience 
that  truth  every  day,  but  I  hope  to  be  rewarded  for  all  my 
trouble  and  sorrow  when  once  I  hold  you  in  my  arms.  You 
will  be  very  clever  if  you  escape  me  again.  I  am  thinking 
of  the  moment  when  I  shall  see  you,  and  the  thought  fills 
me  with  transports  of  joy.  I  believe  I  shall  die  of  rapture 
— pray  God  it  may  be  so.  My  love  is  above  everything : 
/  worship  you. 

"  They  tell  me  the  Electress  of  Brandenburg  has  post- 
poned her  visit.1  She  was  to  have  arrived  two  days  after 
I  left.  All  the  horses  were  ordered  for  her  equipage  ;  the 
Duke  had  given  up  to  her  his  apartments  at  Luisburg, 
and  they  also  brought  music, — all  that  for  nothing !  They 
say  her  husband  wished  her  to  put  off  her  visit  until  another 
time,  but  I  feel  sure  she  will  not  come  ;  the  postponement 
is  only  a  pretext.  It  will  make  the  Duke  and  Duchess 
very  angry  ;  in  fact,  it  is  mocking  them,  but  it  matters 
very  little  to  me." 

Kbnigsmarck  to  the  Princess. 

"FROM  THE  CAMP  OF  NINOVE,  August  — . 

,  23 

"  For  five  days  I  have  not  received  any  letter  from  you  ; 
but  I  know  you  are  travelling,  and  that  explains  it.  I  hope 
to  have  news  from  Wiesbaden,  for  you  can  make  no  excuse 
about  the  post  there.  I  am  grateful  for  your  anxiety  about 
me  when  in  the  battle  ;  it  shows  you  have  some  fragment 
of  love  left  for  me  still.  But  perhaps  it  would  have  been 

1 "  Just  now  we  have  the  news  that  the  Electress  of  Brandenburg  doth 
not  come  so  soon  as  she  intended,  all  things  having  been  provided  for  her." 
— Colt's  Despatch,  Celle,  August  12,  1692. 


220   THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

better  for  me  to  have  been  shot  while  fighting,  for,  though 
I  am  sure  of  myself,  I  cannot  be  sure  of  you.  I  know  not 
if  all  they  tell  me  about  you  is  true.  Your  journey  is  much 
against  my  wishes,  and  I  have  taken  a  resolution  which 
will  astonish  you  greatly.  On  your  love  depends  all  my 
happiness  ;  but,  alas  !  it  is  like  building  on  sand.  But 
I  cannot  change  my  nature,  and,  however  much  I  may  try, 
I  cannot  root  out  my  love  for  you.  If  ever  there  was  a 
woman  worthy  to  be  loved,  that  one  is  surely  you.  I  have 
one  thing  in  common  with  many  men — '  I  love  a  charming 
being,  who  is  loved  by  many '.  That  is  from  a  song,  and 
I  give  it  you  for  what  it  is  worth  ;  it  does  not  come  out 
of  my  brain,— that,  alas !  is  too  much  worried  with  cares, 
jealousies,  sorrows,  and  anxiety  to  be  able  to  invent  any- 
thing witty  or  clever.  Farewell.  I  crave  your  forgiveness 
if  I  suspect  you  without  cause." 

The  Princess  to  Konigsmarck. 

"  WIESBADEN,  Au^^ 
September  3 

"  I  should  like  to  know  why  you  are  angry  and  who  has 
been  telling  you  tales  about  me.  I  am  greatly  wounded 
by  your  want  of  confidence.  If  you  trusted  my  love,  and 
believed  me  incapable  of  treachery,  you  could  not  so  easily 
credit  all  these  silly  tales. 

"  It  puzzles  me  to  tell  you  any  news  ;  we  continue  to  be 
quite  alone.  You  will  see  from  my  note  yesterday  that  I 
have  seen  a  few  silly  faces — happily  only  for  a  little  while, 
for  they  left  again  the  same  day.  I  really  enjoy  being 
alone ;  it  is  as  pleasant  to  me  now  as  it  might  have  been 
unpleasant  formerly.  It  is  you  who  have  worked  this  change, 
and  I  can  assure  you  it  is  not  your  least  glorious  achieve- 
ment :  in  truth,  people  bore  me  and  are  in  my  way  ;  solitude 
is  far  more'  to  my  taste.  I  am  no  longer  equal  to  conversa- 
tion ;  you  fill  my  thoughts  too  much  to  leave  my  mind  free. 

"  I  have  had  a  letter  from  the  Duchess,  who  tells  me  the 
Prince  is  aware  of  everything  said  of  him  ;  she  also  tells  me 
about  the  Cabinet,  and  that  the  Prince  has  written  begging 
that  all  who  invented  the  slander  should  be  punished.1 

1  This  may  have  some  reference  to  Moltke's  plot,  in  connection  with 
which  Duchess  Sophia  was  examined  by  the  Cabinet.  Vide  Colt's  Despatch, 
August  29,  1692  :  "  The  Duchess  of  Hanover  hath  been  examined  in  several 
articles  before  the  Duke  and  his  Council  ". 


THE  VISIT  TO  WIESBADEN  221 

I  don't  think  he  is  over-pleased,  but  it  is   immaterial  to 
me. 

"  I  hope  to-morrow  to  have  another  of  your  letters.  I 
shall  not  be  able  to  sleep  all  night,  for  I  am  not  satisfied 
with  your  last.  I  have  just  read  it  over  again.  You  attri- 
bute my  anxiety  for  you  to  come  safely  out  .of  the  battle  to 
some  '  fragment '  of  my  love.  So  far  from  being  ^.fragment, 
it  is  the  result  of  the  most  ardent  devotion  ever  felt  by 
woman.  In  all  you  say  there  is  a  coldness  that  freezes  me 
to  the  heart.  I  am  pierced  to  the  soul.  But  I  take  some 
comfort  in  the  thought  that  if  you  were  wholly  indifferent 
.to  me  you  would  not  be  so  sensitive.  I  would  rather  you 
were  so  hard,  mortifying  though  it  be,  than  that  you  should 
be  indifferent.  I  am  going  to  bed  now,  but  I  cannot  get  you 
out  of  my  head  ;  waking  or  sleeping,  you  are  always  in  my 
thoughts.  Good-night.  You  are  the  most  perfect  man  in 
the  world,  but  you  are  never  satisfied, — that  is  your  only 
defect.  Cure  yourself  of  it,  and  be  all  mine." 

Konigsmarck  to  the  Princess. 

"  FROM  THE  CAMP  AT  DEINZE,  August  — • 

31 

"  I  am  glad  you  say  that  if  any  hurt  befall  me  you  will 
not  abandon  me.  I  almost  wish  I  could  see  you  again 
without  my  legs  if  it  would  give  me  the  joy  of  holding  you 
always  in  my  arms.  But  you  need  not  fret  yourself;  they 
are  losing  all  hope  of  doing  anything  in  this  campaign,  and 
it  must  soon  end.  Therefore,  resume  again  your  merry 
looks  and  lively  airs ;  tears  and  sadness  do  not  agree  with 
fairs  and  baths.  It  is  true  I  am  not  so  exact  in  writing  as 
you.  I  will  not  dispute  the  point ;  I  know  you  cannot 
always  write,  for  sometimes  you  are  prevented  by  other 
distractions.  Alas !  if  you  were  to  find  real  pleasure  in 
loving  and  being  loved  you  would  be  the  most  satisfied  of 
women.  I  should  have  believed  you  had  you  said  your 
heart  was  without  passion,  save  the  passion  for  journeys ; 
but  I  must  be  pleased,  provided  the  journeys  do  not  let 
other  passions  enter  in.  This  is  what  I  have  to  fear.  Ah ! 
if  you  only  mean  what  you  say  when  you  write,  '  It  is  my 
desire  to  become  an  example  of  the  tenderest  love,  the  most 
perfect  constancy  that  ever  existed  since  the  world  began  ! ' 

"  I  assure  you  what  Duke  Frederick  Augustus  told  me 


222    THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

about  La  Marionette  made  little  impression,  for  before  that 
I  was  disgusted  with  her  ;  her  ways  show  the  sort  of  woman 
she  is.  I  have  not  yet  even  mentioned  you  to  him.  He 
cut  himself  with  a  sword  and  made  a  large  wound  in  his 
head,  trying  to  cut  the  head  of  one  Montrany.  I  call  upon 
him  every  day.  He  is  most  uncomfortable  and  dirty  in 
his  bed  ;  all  the  bandages  are  swathed  round  his  head,  and, 
with  that  terrible  mouth  of  his,  he  looks  a  very  disagreeable 
object.  But  he  is  a  good  sort  of  prince.  I  wish  he  would 
become  Elector,  I  should  have  a  very  good  friend.  My 
sister  Aurora  is  already  at  Hanover ;  I  think  both  my 
sisters  will  soon  join  you.  .  .  .  The  Electress  of  Branden- 
burg will  not  go,  after  all,  to  Luisburg,  and  the  court  will 
soon  be  at  Hanover.  You  heard  about  Ferdinand's  affair  * 
some  little  time  ago.  Not  only  did  he  lose  all  his  money, 
but  he  owed  two  thousand  pistoles.  The  Huguenots  who 
had  won  it  from  him  could  not  get  it,  so  they  went  to  the 
Prince  of  Anhalt  and  demanded  that  they  might  be  paid. 
The  Prince  sent  orders  to  the  illustrious  lover  to  pay  his 
•debts  before  leaving  Berlin.  But  Ferdinand,  in  a  rage, 
went  and  told  the  Electress,  and  she  was  so  annoyed  at  the 
affront  offered  to  her  fancy  man  that  she  sent  word  to  the 
Prince  of  Anhalt  that  she  was  astounded  at  the  liberty  he 
had  taken,  and  she  would  complain  to  the  Elector,  and  so 
on.  The  Prince  begged  her  pardon.  I  believe  Ferdinand's 
mistresses  will  find  some  means  of  satisfying  his  creditors 
and  of  getting  him  out  of  the  scrape.  But  the  funniest 
part  of  the  story  is  to  come.  The  Electress  determined  to 
take  Ferdinand  with  her  to  Luisburg,  but  his  acknowledged 
mistress  begged  her  to  leave  him  behind  and  she  would  pay 
the  debts.  The  Electress  replied  with  determination  that 
she  kept  Ferdinand  for  her  pleasure,  and  when  she  tired  of 
him  the  other  could  do  as  she  pleased,  but  until  then  she 
would  keep  him  well.  There  is  a  happy  man  !  As  for  his 
mistress,  she  may  comfort  herself,  for  the  lover  remains  [at 
Berlin]  and  the  Electress  remains. 

"  I  am  waiting  with  extreme  impatience  for  your  news. 

1  Ferdinand  was  the  Electress  of  Brandenburg's  violinist.  She  took  him 
with  her  wherever  she  went  and  treated  him  with  marked  favour.  But  she  was 
passionately  fond  of  music,  and  we  need  not  therefore  accept  Konigsmarck's 
construction  of  the  intimacy,  which,  however,  agrees  with  the  common  scandal 
of  the  court  of  Berlin  at  that  time. 


THE  VISIT  TO  WIESBADEN  223 

If,  haply,  you  have  arrived,  I  hope  my  prayers  will  protect 
you  from  misfortune,  and  that  you  will  compass  your 
journey  in  perfect  health.  Since  there  seems  so  little 
chance  of  getting  anything  substantial  from  your  parents, 
I  do  not  see  why  you  should  be  afraid  of  them,  or  why  you 
flatter  them,  for  everything  that  is  to  come  to  you  after 
their  death  will  come  to  you  without  that,  so  you  can  easily 
spare  yourself  the  trouble.  But  you  are  very  timid — so  much 
the  worse  for  you  !  They  would  be  silly  if  they  gave  you 
anything  when  they  see  you  are  contented  with  fine  words. 
I  have  won  a  thousand  pistoles,  but  I  may  lose  them  again. 
The  King  has  asked  me  to  play  with  him  in  the  Elector's 
tent,  where  he  is  breakfasting  ;  but  I  don't  know  if  my  rage 
will  let  me  go,  for  I  am  in  the  very  devil  of  a  rage.  I  am 
yours  until  the  tomb." 

The  Princess  to  Konigsmarck. 

,,  TIT  August    24 

"  WIESBADEN,  ^          — . 
September  3 

"  Yesterday  I  received  two  of  your  letters,  one  very 
different  from  the  other.  One  filled  me  with  ecstasy.  If  I 
had  held  you  in  my  arms  I  could  have  devoured  you  with 
kisses  then  and  there.  I  will  begin  by  answering  all  the 
nice  and  charming  things  you  say,  and  then  I  will  scold  you 
for  so  easily  believing  all  the  lies  they  wrote  to  you  about 
me.  I  deserve  more  than  a  little  of  the  love  you  show  me, 
for  nothing  equals  my  devotion. 

"  I  have  long  ago  forgiven  your  carelessness,  though  I  did 
not  get  your  letter  until  I  had  sent  three  times  to  the  post 
without  finding  any,  not  twice,  as  you  say  ;  but  when  your 
letter  came  it  gave  me  such  joy  that  I  forgot  all  my  sorrow 
and  anxiety  of  a  fortnight.  One  kind  word  from  you  is 
•enough  to  bring  me  back  from  that  other  world  of  grief 
and  pain. 

"  Since  you  went  away  I  have  found  existence  so  weari- 
some that  I  have  longed  for  death  to  put  an  end  to  the 
sorrows  and  troubles  which,  as  you  know,  are  many  and 
threaten  to  overwhelm  me.  I  hope  you  will  not  be  foolish 
enough,  or  brave  enough,  to  get  wounded  for  the  sake  of 
seeing  me  the  sooner.  I  would  rather  wait  a  long  time  than 
any  hurt  should  befall  you,  though,  believe  me,  I  am  so 
eager  to  embrace  you  that  I  am  ill  with  longing.  What 


224    THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

you  ask  kept  me  awake  all  night.  What  would  I  not  give 
for  the  thing  to  be  possible  on  your  part !  On  my  part  it 
is  easy,  but  I  will  say  no  more  about  it.  We  can  never  tell 
what  the  future  has  in  store  for  us  ;  but  this  I  know — if 
anything  should  happen  to  you  I  should  not  survive  it.  If 
you  had  chosen  a  place  to  hide  me  from  all  the  world  you 
could  hardly  have  found  a  likelier  spot  than  this.  It  is 
away  from  all  society,  in  utter  solitude.  At  any  other  time 
I  should  have  found  it  tiresome,  for  there  is  not  a  soul  to- 
speak  to,  and  the  people  with  us  are  anything  but  lively  ; 
but  as  I  know  your  wishes  it  is  a  positive  pleasure  to  me 
to  be  cloistered  like  this.  It  would  have  vexed  me  to  find 
any  man  here  :  you  would  certainly  have  jumped  to  the  con- 
clusion that  I  came  to  seek  him.  I  have  so  utterly  renounced 
coquetry  that  I  hate  it  now  as  much  as  I  used  to  love  it. 
I  hardly  know  myself,  and  cannot  understand  how  any 
woman  can  have  changed  as  I  have  done.  As  I  have  told 
you  a  thousand  times,  I  think  of  you  only,  and  count  every- 
thing else  as  nothing. 

"  I  hope  I  may  not  go  to  Epsdorff ;  the  Prince's  return 
may  prevent  me.  I  shall  do  all  I  can  to  get  out  of  it,  for 
I  would  not  delay  a  moment  the  joy  I  would  buy  with  my 
blood — to  see  you  once  more  and  to  seal  with  my  lips  my 
vows  of  love.  You  are  admirable  about  your  Duke  Frederick 
Augustus.  A  fine  test  you  would  put  me  to !  I  shall  be 
sorry  if  you  place  me  under  an  obligation  not  to  look  at 
him,  though  it  is  scarcely  worth  while,  for  surely  you  need 
not  fear.  You  know  full  well  that  you  are  far  above  them 
all.  You  see,  I  am  giving  you  back  all  the  sweet  things- 
you  tell  me  about  La  Reingrave  and  Madame  Delvassine. 

"  But  I  am  too  long  in  justifying  myself  concerning- 
your  accusations  in  your  other  letter.  Please  explain,  for 
I  do  not  understand.  You  speak  as  if  I  had  done  some- 
thing foolish,  or,  if  I  were  too  far  away,  I  nevertheless 
wished  to  do  it.  If  you  did  not  receive  my  letters  for  a 
week  it  was  not  my  fault.  I  wrote  to  you  secretly  from 
Celle  by  the  post  which  was  to  leave  after  me,  and  I  wrote 
•to  you  on  the  journey.  It  is  true  I  only  wrote  once,  but  it 
was  impossible  for  me  to  do  so  oftener.  You  must  have 
had  the  spleen  very  badly  to  wish  you  were  shot  in  the 
battle.  I  am  anxious  to  hear  what  new  fabrications  they 
have  told  you  about  me ;  I  cannot  imagine  what  they  can 


PHILIP    CHRISTOPHER    COUNT    KONIGSMARCK. 

From  a  painting  in  the  possession  of  Count  Gustav  Lewenhaupt. 


THE  VISIT  TO  WIESBADEN  225 

be.  I  am  wholly  innocent.  I  went  over  everything  in  my 
mind  last  night  to  see  if  any  one  could  have  given  a  crooked 
turn  to  any  of  my  actions ;  but  they  have  been  all  so 
straight  that  they  could  not  have  been  maligned.  The 
talebearers  must  have  simply  invented  lies  on  purpose  to 
make  you  quarrel  with  me.  Alas !  I  see  too  well  that 
they  wish  to  estrange  us,  and  you  are  simple  enough  to 
fall  into  the  trap.  It  is  very  hard  that,  however  much  I 
may  strive  to  prove  my  love  and  devotion,  you  blindly 
believe  all  these  foolish  tales.  I  should  be  mad  if  I  were 
to  give  you  the  least  cause  to  complain  about  me,  for  I 
would  rather  die  than  do  it.  There  is  madness  indeed  in 
the  passion  I  have  for  you.  I  cannot  understand  how  any 
one  can  love  as  I  love ;  you  will  never  feel  or  experience  it 
unless  you  '  build  on  sand,'  as  you  say  you  do  when  you 
trust  me.  Only  be  to  me  as  I  am  to  you ;  I  ask  no  other 
happiness." 

Konigsmarck  to  the  Princess, 

"  DEINZE,  September  3. 

"  I  have  received  the  letter  you  wrote  from  Eimbeck 
I  see  in  it,  with  much  joy,  that  you  have  not  forgotten 
me  yet.  I  greatly  wish,  on  your  return,  you  may  be  able 
to  say  the  same  things  to  me  ;  but  alas  !  what  have  I  not 
to  fear  ?  You  always  speak  of  my  not  exposing  myself  to 
danger,  but  you  are  exposed  to  the  eyes  of  many  handsome 
cavaliers.  Who  knows  but  that  among  the  crowd  at  the 
fair  you  will  see  some  one  who  may  wound  you.  The 
sharper  the  attack  the  greater  the  danger.  Mon  Dieu  ! 
if  you  are  wounded  what  shall  I  do  ?  Where  shall  I  turn  ? 
Why  are  you  so  lovely  ? 

"  I  have  just  returned  from  a  walk  with  the  King. 
The  Duke  of  Richmond  was  there,  like  a  thrush,  com- 
mitting ajl  kinds  of  extravagances.  Duke  Frederick 
Augustus  has  decamped  without  saying  anything  to  any 
one.  He  owes  more  than  fifteen  thousand  pistoles ; 
I  hold  eight  thousand  against  him.  He  leaves  behind 
him  many  people  who  speak  badly  of  him,  but  I  have 
a  great  regard  for  him  personally,  though  his  conduct  is 
devilish  bad.  As  to  having  too  much  wit,  he  has  none  at 
all  ;  he  has  not  even  won  the  approval  of  the  ladies  in 

15 


226   THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

Brussels.  You  were  right  when  you  withheld  him  yours. 
The  Elector  [of  Bavaria]  went  the  day  before  yesterday  to 
Ghent,  which  he  likes  better  than  Brussels.  He  finds  the 
ladies  prettier  there,  but  as  I  have  not  seen  them  at  either 
place  I  do  not  know  whether  he  is  right." 

The  Princess  to  Konigsmarck. 

"[WIESBADEN,  Tuesday,  30.] l 

"...  Perhaps  I  am  mistaken,  but  I  detect  a  vein  of 
irony  in  your  letter  which  is  far  from  pleasant.  I  have  no 
wish  to  see  any  cavalier,  for  you  would  surely  think  I  came 
here  because  of  him  ;  but  I  need  not  have  any  uneasiness 
on  that  score  at  Wiesbaden,  for  there  is  not  a  decently 
dressed  man  about  the  place.  You  will  have,  nothing  to 
reproach  me  with  about  this  journey,  thank  God  ;  for  I 
dread  your  criticisms.  You  are  the  most  troublesome 
creature  when  you  set  about  them.  What  matter  even  if 
there  be  a  man  within  a  hundred  leagues  of  me  ?  Why 
should  you,  the  handsomest  and  most  fascinating  of  all 
men,  fear  him  ?  I  cannot  forgive  your  mistrust.  You  do 
not  believe  my  promises,  or  you  would  not  perpetually 
worry  me  about  my  demeanour.  If  you  could  see  the 
hole  I  am  in  even  you  would  be  satisfied. 

"  Here  is  my  day  :  I  played  cards  with  my  mother  all 
the  afternoon.  I  rested  a  long  time  on  my  bed.  I  went 
for  a  walk  with  my  women.  I  supped  and  I  am  going  to 
bed.  I  hope  you  will  be  satisfied." 

Konigsmarck  to  the  Princess. 

"  [Undated.] 

"  You  depict  the  place  where  you  are  so  dreadfully  dull 
that  I  have  not  the  heart  to  forbid  my  pet  from  being 
cheered  a  little.  The  Frankfort  fair  will  give  you  some 
amusement.  I  am  sorry  not  to  be  one  of  your  party. 
What  about  your  mother  ?  When  will  she  take  the  road  ? 
and  will  she  return  with  you  to  Hanover,  or  is  she  going 
to  stay  on  at  Wiesbaden  ?  Those  who  wrote  to  me  from 
Hanover  only  sent  me  the  news  of  the  place  ;  they  didn't 
mention  you,  therefore  don't  be  angry,  there  are  no  tale- 
bearers, and  if  there  were  I  should  not  believe  them." 

1  The  beginning  of  this  letter  is  missing. 


THE  VISIT  TO  WIESBADEN  227 

The  Princess  to  Konigsmarck. 

"  [WIESBADEN,]  September  — . 

"  I  am  delighted  to  hear  from  you  that  the  campaign 
will  soon  end  ;  but  it  will  not  end  as  soon  as  I  wish,  for  I 
am  awaiting  your  return  with  an  impatience  which  only 
equals  my  love. 

"  We  are  still  alone  here,  and  if  any  tell  you  the  contrary 
they  are  very  badly  informed.  I  am  going  to  the  fair,  and 
La  Marionette  has  arranged  for  me  to  meet  her  there.  My 
mother  made  me  write  and  ask  her  to  be  at  Frankfort  the 
same  time  as  ourselves.  I  implore  you,  do  not  get  ill ; 
nothing  will  take  place  there  to  make  you  so.  I  am  grate- 
ful to  you  for  giving  me  leave  to  do  as  I  please  ;  you  know 
well  that  you  risk  nothing  in  granting  me  freedom,  for  I 
am  incapable  of  abusing  it.  I  know  to  the  tip  of  my  little 
finger  everything  I  ought  to  do  to  please  you,  and  I  never 
fail  in  doing  it.  But  can  I  be  so  sure  of  you  ?  Shall  I  see 
you  again  as  tender  as  before  ?  I  flatter  myself,  yes  ;  but 
if  it  be  otherwise  I  will  not  live  a  moment.  I  know  no 
happiness  in  the  world  save  the  one  of  being  loved  by  you  ; 
I  ask  for  no  other,  for  you  are  the  source  of  all  my  joy." 

Konigsmarck  to  the  Princess. 

"  DEINZE,  September  ^. 

"  When  you  have  read  my  previous  letter  you  will  see  I 
have  had  very  little  correspondence  at  Hanover  with  any 
one  concerning  you.  The  fear  our  affair  may  be  discovered 
makes  me  go  with  a  bridle  in  my  mouth,  and  I  have  few 
acquaintances  to  whom  I  would  confide  such  a  secret.  I 
think  the  Duchess  of  Hanover  answered  the  Prince  very 
well  ;  she  is  careful  to  support  the  Cabinet.  She  is  just 
like  the  Countess  Platen  ;  I  fear  some  day  she  will  have 
the  same  power.  ...  I  have  been  looking  forward  to  seeing 
you  again  soon,  but  the  news  from  Hanover  tells  me  that 
the  Duke  is  going  to  hunt  at  Epsdorff,  where  your  father 
is  now.^  The  Prince  is  going  there  too,  and,  as  the  Duchess 
of  Hanover  is  going  to  visit  the  Electress  of  Brandenburg, 
you  are  sure  to  be  one  of  the  hunting  party. 

1  Colt  mentions  that  the  Duke  of  Celle  was  at  Epsdorff  (vide  Despatch, 
September  15,  1692) ;  and  he  was  also  there  on  October  7.  On  the  loth  he 
went  to  Gbhre. 


228    THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

"  The  Electress  of  Brandenburg  has  been  in  a  great 
rage  with  Montalbany.  She  joked  him  at  supper  because 
people  said  he  had  such  thin,  lean  legs.  Next  morning  he 
waited  on  the  Electress  in  her  chamber,  and  she  laughed  at 
him  again  about  the  same  thing.  He  lost  his  temper,  and, 
kicking  his  leg  up  on  the  toilet  table,  said  to  her,  '  Voild, 
Madame,  all  those  who  have  told  you  such  things  have 
lied '.  The  page-in-waiting,  seeing  his  impertinence  had 
carried  him  too  far,  tried  to  make  him  retire  ;  but  Montal- 
bany was  in  such  a  rage  that  he  gave  him  a  fillip  which 
made  the  blood  flow  out  of  his  mouth  and  eyes.  The 
Electress  flew  into  a  furious  passion,  forbade  Montalbany 
ever  to  see  her  again,  and  ordered  him  from  her  presence. 
But  she  did  not  long  keep  to  that  resolution,  for  one  of  his 
friends  begged  and  prayed  for  him  so  hard  that  she  made 
it  up  again.  They  say  here  it  was  Ferdinand,  and  the 
scandal  does  much  harm  to  that  lady.  Prince  Ernest 
writes  nothing  of  it  to  me. 

"  In  one  of  my  letters  the  news  from  Hanover  tells  me 
that  my  two  sisters  have  gone  to  Wiesbaden.  I  fear  they 
will  find  you  no  longer  there,  which  will  be  a  disappoint- 
ment to  them,  as  they  looked  forward  to  paying  their  court 
to  you  at  Wiesbaden,  since  there  is  so  little  chance  of  their 
doing  it  elsewhere,  except  at  Celle.  It  is  annoying,  for 
they  would  like  to  show  their  devotion,  but  have  not  the 
opportunity  of  doing  so.  ...  What  shall  1  do  if  you  go  to 
Epsdorff?  I  shall  not  see  you  until  the  carnival  ;  and  I 
must  see  you,  whatever  it  may  cost  me.  Try  to  think  how 
I  can  do  so,  and  let  me  know  of  a  plan.  I  should  like  to 
know,  too,  if  you  wish  me  to  wear  my  own  hair  this  winter, 
or  whether  you  would  rather  see  me  in  a  wig.  Your  wishes 
will  be  my  law  in  this  as  in  other  things  ;  in  the  merest 
trifle  I  shall  always  study  your  sweet  will." 

The  Princess  to  Konigsmarck. 

"[WIESBADEN,]  September  -. 

"  How  happy  I  am  to  have  a  lover  like  you  !  The  more 
I  read  your  letters  the  more  I  am  delighted  with  them. 
No  one  ever  had  noble  qualities  so  noble ;  no  one  could 
imagine  a  more  gracious  lover.  I  am  so  grateful  to  you  for 
giving  me  leave  to  go  to  the  fair. 


THE  VISIT  TO  WIESBADEN  229 

"  Last  night  I  received  La  Marionette's  answer.  She 
will  be  at  Frankfort  the  same  day  as  ourselves.  What 
would  I  not  give  for  you  to  be  with  us  !  I  should  die  of 
joy.  Nothing  can  equal  the  impatience  I  feel  to  see  you 
again  ;  but  I  must  be  patient,  though  it  is  very  hard  when 
one  loves  to  distraction.  I  do  not  know  yet  whether  there 
will  be  any  one  else  at  Frankfort.  I  shall  write  to  you  as 
soon  as  I  ge"t  there  and  give  you  an  account  of  everything 
I  do  ;  but  be  sure  that  if  all  the  delights  and  charms  of  the 
earth  were  at  the  fair  you  would  fill  my  mind  wholly,  and 
I  shall  do  nothing  that  does  not  show  my  love  for  you — 
a  love  beyond  all  that  I  can  express.  I  defy  the  whole 
world  to  equal  me  in  tenderness  and  faithfulness  ;  and  you 
deserve  it  wholly,  for  you  are  a  king  among  men. 

"  La  Confidente  has  been  far  from  well  the  last  few  days, 
and  I  am  anxious  about  her ;  but  I  hope  the  change  will 
soon  set  her  right,  for  this  air  is  bad,  and  I  am  dying  with 
impatience  to  leave  it.  Here  are  so  many  sick  people  that 
I  fear  I  may  become  one  of  them  myself.  I  should  be 
so  distressed  if  you  were  to  find  me  ugly  on  your  return 
that  I  would  make  up  on  purpose  to  please  you.  They 
say  I  am  getting  stouter.  I  am  going  to  bed  now,  but  I 
feel  very  lonely  in  it,  for,  since  you  left,  how  many  prayers, 
what  eagerness,  what  desire,  to  see  you  again  !  Good- 
night, my  dear  one.  If  I  hold  thee  once  again  thou  wilt 
never  escape  me  more." 

Konigsmarck  to  the  Princess. 

"  DEINZE,  September  — . 
36 

"  Since  you  have  asked  me  to  explain  all  I  have  against 
you  I  will  make  a  clean  breast  of  it  ;  *  four  things,  of  which 
the  last  is  the  worst.  The  first  is  that  you  did  not  mention 
that  you  saw  Spar  at  Celle.  The  second,  it  gave  you  great 
pleasure  to  meet  Guldenlon  at  Wiesbaden.  The  third, 
although  you  assured  me  you  did  not  care  about  going  to 
the  fair,  you  seize  any  pretext  for  going.  You  pretend  it  is 
because  your  mother  wishes  it !  The  fourth  is  the  new 
rival  [the  Prince  of  Hesse].  He  is  near  you,  in  his  own 
country.  His  sister  (La  Marionette)  pleads  for  him.  You 

1  Evidently  in  answer  to  the  Princess's  letter  of  -— ^g-s-^4- . 

September  3 


23o    THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

are  going  to  the  fair,  and  he  will  be  there  with  his  maquerelle ; 
and  if  he  goes  to  Hanover,  his  old  sister,  who  is  the  most 
cunning  of  women  and  well  versed  in  intrigue,  will  be 
there  too,  on  the  pretext  of  a  visit,  to  take  him  to  your 
chamber,  even  though  you  were  abed.  I  will  not  suffer 
such  things  ;  I  would  rather  go  to  the  Indies.  It  would 
not  be  pleasant  for  me  to  find  a  lover  in  your  chamber, 
while  I,  who  worship  you,  must  not  enter.  But  I  forget, 
he  is  a  prince,  and  for  that  reason  privileged  by  his  rank. 
All  the  same,  I  yield  him  nothing.  ...  I  fear  this  letter 
would  be  offensive  if  I  believed  all  I  wrote ;  but  no,  dear 
angel,  I  know  your  virtue  and  your  constancy,  and  so  I 
warn  you  to  be  careful.  Two  women  are  with  you,  one 
of  whom  has  already  done  her  best  to  make  you  hate 
me — your  mother.  My  dear  Leonnisse  (I  give  you  that 
name,  for  it  is  that  of  an  incomparable  woman,  if  you  are 
anxious  to  know  whom,  read  the  Due  de  Bourbon's  romance, 
Prince  de  Tarente),  what  should  I  do  without  you  ?  I  have 
met  with  a  lot  of  bad  luck  in  life,  but  at  least  I  have  had 
the  joy  of  worshipping  you,  and  from  the  first  day  I  saw 
you  my  heart  was  touched,  though  I  was  only  a  boy  and 
unable  to  declare  my  passion.1  But  even  then  I  loved 
you,  and  I  love  you  now.  As  my  love  for  you  was  born 
with  me,  so  to  speak,  so  it  will  also  die  with  me.  Oh, 
Leonnisse  !  if  you  only  knew  how  I  worship  you,  you  would 
freely  excuse  all  the  follies  passion  makes  me  commit  and 
all  the  suspicions  that  take  shape  in  my  brain.  The  Elec- 
tor [of  Bavaria]  swears  at  me  about  my  gloomy  temper, 
which  he  says  I  brought  from  Hanover.  That  is  true  ;  but 
I  am  the  only  one  who  knows  the  cause  of  my  complaint, 
and  the  remedy.  I  am  in  a  most  piteous  state  night  and 
day.  I  open  my  eyes  only  to  weep,  and  my  mouth  opens 
only  to  sigh.  You  ask  me  to  tell  you  the  vow  that  I  have 
taken.  It  is  to  love  you  as  long  as  a  drop  of  blood  remains 
in  my  veins,  and  though  you  may  change  to  me,  I  shall 
never  change  to  you. 

"  I  have  seen  your  first  lover,  the  one  you  were  on  the 
point  of  marrying.-  What  a  face !  They  tell  me  his  wife 
is  at  Ghent,  and  the  ladies  of  the  place  will  not  pay  their 

1  Another  reference  to  their  early  friendship  at  Celle. 

2  Most   probably    Prince   Henry    Casimir   of  Nassau-Dietz,    Hereditary 
Governor  of  Friesland,  and  nephew  of  William  of  Orange. 


THE  VISIT  TO  WIESBADEN  231 

respects  to  her,  she  gives  herself  such  airs.  She  sees  nobody  ; 
but  you  would  have  enjoyed  yourself  like  a  queen.  Think 
how  pleased  I  should  have  been,  for  you  would  only  be  two 
hours  from  me,  and  your  husband  in  the  army ! 

"  Duke  Frederick  Augustus  has  left  the  army  with 
very  few  honours  ;  he  owes  money  right  and  left.  He  left 
Brussels  under  a  cloud,  for  he  gave  a  powder  to  the  first 
jeweller  who  dunned  him  which  sent  the  poor  man  nearly 
mad.  The  rogue  knew  he  was  going  to  bolt,  but  he  con- 
cealed his  intentions  and  still  made  promises.  The  other 
day  I  dined  with  him  at  the  Comte  d'Egmont's,  when  he 
made  me  many  hypocritical  promises.  That  is  the  way 
young  men  go  on  nowadays  ;  I  give  them  a  good  rating. 
The  season  is  getting  so  cold  that  every  one  is  beginning 
to  speak  about  winter  quarters." 

Kbnigsmarck  to  Frdulein  von  Knesebeck. 

"  You  are  right  to  think  the  visit  to  Frankfort  would 
displease  me,  especially  as  I  begged  and  prayed  her  not  to 
go.  However,  all  can  be  repaired  if  she  only  stops  one  day 
there.  It  is  not  fair.  Did  she  not  say  she  hoped  I  would 
not  go  often  to  Brussels  ?  That  was  sufficient.  I  only  set 
foot  there  for  four  hours  for  a  game  of  tennis  ;  I  did  not 
even  go  to  Ghent.  The  wealthy  marriage  they  proposed 
for  me  I  rejected  from  the  first.1  I  also  refused  to  under- 
take the  journey  of  which  you  know,2  though  it  was  the 
only  thing  to  save  my  property.  Count  Oxanstern  3  assured 
me  that  if  I  had  gone  the  King  [of  Sweden]  would  have 
made  me  an  offer  of  a  regiment  with  the  title  of  general, 
and  Marshal  Hasbert  also  said  that  if  I  had  attached  myself 
to  the  service  of  the  King  I  should  at  present  be  a  general. 
Consider,  dear  friend,  what  I  have  sacrificed  and  what  she 
is  doing,  and  then  say  who  is  in  the  wrong.  This  is  between 
ourselves,  for  I  do  not  wish  her  to  know  about  this  at  all, 
so  pray  don't  mention  it." 

1  This  marriage  has  been  alluded  to  before — in  1691. 

2  The  mission  to  Sweden  ;  he  went  no  farther  than  Hamburg. 

3  A  Swedish   noble  of  high  rank,  sometime  envoy  at  Hanover.     This 
letter  is  very  characteristic,  and  undoubtedly  shows  that  Konigsmarck  had 
made  sacrifices  of  his  worldly  prospects  to  be  near  the  object  of  his  devotion. 
But  it  was  hardly  generous  of  him  to  remind  the  Princess  of  it,  even  in- 
directly, for  she  had  made  a  much  greater  sacrifice  for  him. 


232    THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

Komgsmarck  to  the  Princess. 

"  GAVERN.  October  -. 

J4 

"  I  am  extremely  sorry  to  hear  that  La  Confidente  is 
unwell.  I  trust,  however,  that  the  gaiety  of  the  fair  will 
soon  put  her  to  rights.  I  am  glad  to  see  you  are  going 
to  leave  that  unhealthy  place  (Wiesbaden)  without  being 
attacked  by  any  complaint  or  illness.  You  need  not  be 
so  very  anxious  on  my  behalf  about  your  looks,  for  I  could 
not  find  you  more  beautiful  than  I  do  already,  and  if  you 
wish  to  "  make  up "  for  me,  I  shall  not  see  you  for  some 
time,  and  your  visit  [to  the  fair]  will  have  fatigued  you. 
Had  you  done  so  after  your  trip  I  might  have  flattered 
myself  it  was  for  me  ;  but  in  any  case  your  care  will  not 
be  thrown  away.  The  fine  world  of  Frankfort  will  have 
the  benefit,  and  you  will  have  the  satisfaction  of  finding 
yourself  hated  by  the  ladies  of  the  city,  for  you  will  surpass 
them  all  in  beauty  and  take  away  their  lovers.  You  have 
made  so  many  conquests  in  so  many  different  countries 
that  I  do  not  doubt  for  a  moment  that  you  will  enjoy  the 
same  triumphs  in  Frankfort,  and  include  that  town  in  the 
list  of  your  trophies.  You  seek  the  banks  of  the  Rhine 
and  the  Maine  for  people  to  admire  you  and  rave  about 
you  ;  but  why  do  you  not  cast  a  glance  towards  this  un- 
fortunate country  ?  Here  are  kings,  dukes,  electors,  and 
princes  ready  to  woo,  and  who  of  them  could  resist  your 
charms  ? 

"  We  arrived  here  after  a  march  of  thirty-six  hours  with- 
out a  rest ;  some  of  our  men  fell  from  their  horses,  and 
others  have  the  fever.  Several  wanted  to  entertain  the 
Prince  at  Ghent :  Goritz  wanted  to  give  him  a  dinner  at 
his  wife's,  Ovenair  wanted  to  give  him  a  livelier  one  with 
loose  women.  They  tossed  dice  for  it,  and  Ovenair  won. 
The  Prince  told  me  I  could  make  one  of  the  party.  Monsieur 
Goritz  goes  to  the  Hague,  the  Prince  starts  on  the  i5th, 
and  Monsieur  de  Konigsmarck  goes  to  Brussels  to  cure 
himself  if  he  can.  Here  in  a  few  words  is  news  you  will 
not  much  relish  ;  but,  to  finish  with  a  bonne  bouche,  I  vow 
to  you  with  much  submission  that  no  one  on  earth  could  be 
your  more  humble  servant  than  I." 


CHAPTER  XVIII. 

KONIGSMARCK  RETURNS  FROM  THE  WAR. 

Come  back !  from  love  of  thee  my  soul  is  glowing, 
Come  back  !  without  thee  my  sad  heart  is  grieving, 
Come  back  !  for  by  thy  absence,  my  beloved  one, 
Bewildered,  bitter  tears  in  floods  are  flowing. 

HAFIZ. 

THE  Princess  and  her  mother  went  to  the  Frankfort  fair ; 
but  their  visit  was  a  brief  one,  and  the  Prince  of  Hesse  was 
prevented  from  meeting  them,  so  Konigsmarck's  jealous 
fears  were  groundless.  From  Frankfort  the  Duchess  of 
'Celle  took  her  daughter  back  with  her  to  Epsdorff,  where 
the  Duke  was  a-hunting.  We  find  Konigsmarck  writing, 
"  At  present  my  greatest  happiness  is  to  know  that  you  are 
at  Epsdorff,  and  you  are  going  to  stay  ".1  But  the  Princess 
remained  there  only  a  few  days,  as  her  presence  was  im- 
peratively required  at  Hanover,  where  the  Elector  and 
Electress  of  Brandenburg  had  at  last  arrived  on  their  long- 
expected  visit,  and  were  being  entertained  with  every  mark 
of  honour.  The  Duke  of  Hanover  was  anxious  to  be  in- 
vested with  the  Electoral  dignity  forthwith,  and  urged  the 
Elector  of  Brandenburg  to  put  pressure  upon  the  Emperor. 
The  defeat  at  Steinkirk  had  sown  discontent  among  the 
Allies,  and  many  of  them,  including  the  Duke  of  Hanover, 
if  he  did  not  receive  his  dues,  were  ready  to  lend  ear  again 
to  Louis.  Colt  writes  :  "  Balati  [the  French  envoy]  is  at 
.last  returned,  bringing  many  fine  things  with  him,  especi- 
ally for  the  ladies,  and  he  says  so  many  fine  things  of  the 
French  court  in  public,  besides  what  he  doth  in  private, 
that  I  have  met  with  much  coldness  from  the  Minister, 
Count  Platen,  and  his  lady,  who  govern  all  things  here  ; 
.and  if  I  could  speak  with  the  tongue  of  an  angell,  and  this 
Duke's  interest  were  never  so  much  on  my  side,  it  would 

1  Konigsmarck  to  the  Princess,  Ghent,  September  — 
233 


234   THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

avail  but  little,  unless  I  did  make  some  presents  as  they 
had  from  France  'V  The  Duke,  a  born  diplomatist  tem- 
porised with  France,  and  got  what  he  wanted  from  the 
Elector  of  Brandenburg,  who  brought  his  visit  to  a  close, 
well  pleased,  and  departed  with  many  expressions  of  good- 
will. Two  days  later  the  Duke  of  Hanover  went  to  carry 
the  good  tidings  to  the  Duke  of  Celle  at  Gohre. 

With  all  this  important  public  business  on  hand  it  would 
not  have  been  surprising  if  private  and  court  intrigues  had 
been  for  the  time  overlooked  ;  but  it  was  not  so.  While 
the  princes  were  busy  with  affairs  of  state,  the  princesses 
were  no  less  concerned  with  family  matters.  In  some  way 
the  intimacy  between  Sophie  Dorothea  and  Konigsmarck 
had  again  attracted  attention.  Perhaps  some  of  the  letters 
miscarried  (it  is  noteworthy  that  none  of  the  Princess's 
letters  from  Frankfort  are  preserved),  or  the  servants 
babbled  to  Countess  Platen  and  aroused  her  jealousy 
afresh,  or  the  Duchess  of  Celle,  who  narrowly  watched  her 
daughter  while  she  was  with  her,  discovered  something  and 
communicated  her  fears  to  the  Duke.  However  that  may 
have  been,  suspicion  was  aroused,  and  it  was  determined 
to  prevent  Konigsmarck  and  the  Princess  from  coming 
together  again.  Suspicion  fell  on  Countess  Aurora  as  an 
accomplice  in  the  intrigue,  and  Duke  Ernest  Augustus 
sent  her  a  message  to  the  effect  that  she  would  do  well  to 
avoid  Hanover  in  the  future.  Konigsmarck  also  seems  to- 
have  received  a  hint  that  other  princes  might  find  his 
services  more  useful. 

All  this  threw  both  the  Princess  and  her  lover  into 
great  alarm  and  agitation,  though  their  fears,  in  either 
case,  were  not  on  account  of  personal  danger  (which  was 
considerable),  but  lest  they  should  be  parted  from  one 
another.  Much  of  this  is  told  in  the  five  letters  that  follow. 

The  Princess  to  Konigsmarck. 

,,  ,-TT  -.  September  28 

"[HANOVER,]  — £—      ^— . 
IJ     October  8 

"  It  is  not  enough  for  me  to  be  bowed  down  to  the 
earth  by  the  fear  of  losing  you,  but  you  must  add  to  the 
peine  by  being  dissatisfied  with  me.  All  the  rest  is  nothing 

1  Colt's    Despatch,  Hanover,  September  27,  1692. 


KONIGSMARCK  RETURNS  FROM  THE  WAR      235 

in  comparison  with  this  last  affliction  ;  it  makes  me  oblivious 
to  everything  else.  I  can  find  no  comfort  anywhere.  You 
reproach  me  with  having  met  La  Marionette  [the  Princess 
of  Hesse]  as  arranged  at  Frankfort.  I  could  not  help  going 
there  ;  my  mother  insisted  on  it.  Besides,  I  knew  that  the 
Prince  was  not  coming  with  his  sister  ;  I  thought  him  much 
farther  away  than  he  actually  was.  In  any  case,  everything 
passed  off  so  well  that  you  are  the  most  unjust  of  men  if 
you  are  not  satisfied.  I  did  not  see  a  single  person  there 
worth  mentioning,  as  I  have  already  told  you*.  The  person 
you  sent  to  spy  has  doubtless  informed  you  to  the  same  effect, 
and  I  am  hoping  that  the  first  letter  I  receive  from  you  will 
give  me  as  much  joy  as  the  last  four  have  given  me  sorrow. 
They  are  all  in  the  same  strain,  and  I  am  desperate  because 
you  are  so  unjust.  My  life  ought  to  show  that  my  love  for 
you  is  unequalled.  I  have  ceased  to  take  interest  in  any- 
thing, and  for  this  long  while  have  sacrificed  everything  for 
you — to  prove  better  that  I  am  worthy  of  your  love. 

"  If  I  must  give  up  seeing  you,  I  will  give  up  the  world 
altogether.  I  cannot  contemplate  such  a  thing.  Yet  I 
fear  I  must  be  prepared  for  it,  for  the  Electress  of  Branden- 
burg has  told  me  that  you  will  be  sent  away,  but  on  some 
pretext  which  will  not  apparently  concern  me ;  she  had  it 
from  Countess  Platen.  I  cannot  describe  to  you  the  state 
I  have  been  in  for  the  last  four  or  five  days ;  if  grief  could 
kill,  I  should  surely  be  dead.  I  no  longer  sleep,  I  do  not 
eat  at  all,  and  I  am  a  prey  to  gloomy  foreboding.  It  may 
be  that  time  and  absence  will  cure  you  of  your  passion,  but 
mine  will  end  only  with  my  life.  That  is  a  truth  time  will 
show.  I  have  your  portrait.  I  cannot  look  on  it  without 
tears  ;  I  wish  it  might  testify  to  the  intensity  of  my  sorrow 
and  love.  I  fear  many  afflictions  and  misfortunes  are  in 
store.  Le  Barbouilleur  is  in  league  with  Countess  Platen 
and  her  cabal.  He  tries  to  harm  Aurora  in  everything  he 
possibly  can,  and  went  so  far  as  to  say  to  the  Duchess 
Sophia  that  she  was  a  '  she-devil '.  I  should  hardly  have 
believed  he  could  have  been  so  base  a  coward  as  that.  I 
told  you  that  he  once  began  to  show  airs  to  me,  but  he  did 
not  go  far ;  the  anger  I  evinced  soon  stopped  him. 

"You  say  you  are  'going  to  Brussels  to  cure  yourself. 
How  can  you  have  the  cruelty  to  write  such  a  thing  to  me 
— who  am  so  sensitive  and  tender?  Anger  alone  spoke 


236   THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

when  you  wrote  those  words.  You  don't  mean  to  go.  I 
know  not  yet  by  what  mischance  one  of  your  letters  was 
opened  :  La  Confidente  is  trying  to  find  out ;  fortunately 
you  say  little  in  it.  But  you  tell  me  that  they  will  force 
you  to  leave  me.  Let  me  know  what  makes  you  think  so  ; 
reassure  me  in  my  trouble  and  anxiety.  My  love  is  proof 
against  all  ;  I  vow  you  an  everlasting  constancy. 

"  The  Duke  [of  Hanover]  went  away  this  morning  on  a 
visit  to  my  father.1  He  took  only  Le  Barbouilleur  with 
him.  I  believe  the  Duchess  will  follow,  and  I  shall  go  with 
her,  unless  the  Prince  should  arrive  soon.  ...  I  have  been 
interrupted  at  this  point  in  an  alarming  manner.  I  thought 
I  was  perfectly  safe,  for  I  gave  orders  to  say  that  I  was 
asleep.  I  had  your  portrait  quite  near  me,  attached  to  a 
screen,  and  .  .  ." 2 

The  Princess  to  Konigsmarck. 

"  [HANOVER,]  October  — . 
20 

"  I  have  heard  nothing  from  you  for  a  week.  I  am  in 
despair,  for  I  have  never  been  in  such  need  of  consolation 
as  now.  I  still  hope  to  receive  a  letter  from  you  this  evening, 
but  if  that  hope  should  fail  I  know  not  what  will  become 
of  me.  I  have  endless  things  to  tell  you.  I  would  give  my 
blood  to  be  able  to  tell  them  to  you  by  word  of  mouth,  but 
I  see  little  or  no  chance  of  it.  If  you  could  come  secretly 
I  think  the  plan  might  succeed.  I  shall  go  to  meet  the 
Prince,3  but  I  shall  be  there  only  a  few  days ;  we  shall 
return  here  together.  The  matter  they  are  trying  to  ar- 
range, and  on  which  depends  my  visit  to  the  Electress  of 
Brandenburg,  is  almost  settled.  There  seems  to  be  no 
doubt  that  the  investiture  will  take  place  in  four  or  five 
weeks.  Knowing  your  temper,  I  am  not  sure  if  you  will 
approve  of  my  visit.  I  can  assure  you  I  think  only  of  how 
to  escape  from  going ;  but  it  is  very  difficult,  for  I  have  not 
to  deal  with  children,  and  in  the  present  state  of  things  it 

1  At  the  Duke  of  Celle's  hunting-seats  of  Epsdorff  and  Gohre.     In  his 
Despatch,  September  30,  1692,  Colt  mentions  that  the  "  Elector  of  Branden- 
burg has  gone  home  and  that  the   Duke  of  Hanover  is  with  his  brother, 
hunting  ". 

2  The  end  of  this  letter  is  not  to  be  found. 

3  The  Prince  of  Hanover  had  returned  from  the  campaign  to  Luisburg. 


KONIGSMARCK  RETURNS  FROM  THE  WAR      237 

would  be  harder  to  make  excuses  than  at  any  other  time. 
Let  me  know  your  wishes,  and  think,  too,  of  some  sensible 
expedient,  in  case  you  should  not  wish  me  to  go.  The 
Prince  has  written  a  ridiculous  letter,  with  an  order  to  give 
it,  from  him,  to  Le  Barbouilleur,  with  his  compliments.  I 
did  nothing  of  the  kind.  La  Confidente  returned  it  to  him 
without  a  word  from  me.  He  avoids  me  as  much  as  I  shun 
him.  No  one  could  spend  a  more  miserable  life  than  I  do. 
I  am  in  a  perpetual  state  of  terror,  and,  to  crown  all,  your 
letters  are  so  cold  that  they  make  me  lose  patience.  I  de- 
clare, every  one  conspires  against  me.  Instead  of  loving 
me  more  firmly  than  ever,  you  overwhelm  me  with  unreason- 
able complaints.  Maybe  you  rejoice  at  the  obstacles  in  the 
way  of  my  happiness.  While  I  am  fretting  my  heart  out 
here,  and  have  not  a  moment's  peace  for  fear  they  may  part 
us  for  ever,  you  may  be  secretly  tasting  the  joys  of  new 
conquests,  without  giving  me  so  much  as  a  thought.  I  am 
surprised  that  I  still  keep  my  reason,  or  know  what  I  am 
saying.  Persecuted  as  I  am  on  all  sides,  tormented  by 
anxiety  on  your  account,  I  should  not  wonder  if  my  brain 
were  to  give  way.  I  have  never  deserved  your  love  more 
than  now.  However  bitterly  you  may  reproach  me,  however 
much  I  may  fear,  nothing  shakes  my  resolve  to  love  you 
for  ever,  and  to  prove  it  to  you  all  I  can.  They  can  hinder 
me  from  seeing  you,  but  they  can  never  keep  me  from  being 
yours  all  my  life  long  :  you  take  the  place  of  all  to  me. 
They  told  the  Duke  [of  Hanover]  that  you  moved  to  an- 
other house  with  your  sister  Aurora,  and  so  sought  to  lure 
me  to  your  place.  Think  of  that !  How  they  seek  to  ruin* 
you  !  I  did  not  sleep  all  night  thinking  of  our  being  parted 
for  ever.  I  know  now  the  agony  of  separation  so  well  that 
I  dread  it  more  than  death.  Yet  I  believe  with  a  little 
prudence  and  good  behaviour  one  could  remedy  all  these 
evils,  but  I  would  rather  speak  to  you  about  the  measures 
to  be  taken  than  write.  When  shall  I  have  that  bliss? 
It  seems  very  far  away.  I  am  so  uncertain  about  your 
feelings  towards  me  that  I  hardly  know  what  to  think. 
It  is  my  great  anxiety,  for  were  I  sure  of  your  love  my 
sufferings  would  be  much  less.  I  am  trembling  as  I 
write — I  fear  every  sound  ;  but  I  worship  you,  and  as  long 
as  you  love  me  I  can  console  myself  easily  about  all  the 
rest." 


238        THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 
Konigsmarck  to  the  Princess. 

"  DEINZE,  September  — . 

"  We  have  sent  our  baggage  on  to  Ghent,  and  as  I  am 
in  need  of  paper,  I  beg  your  pardon  for  using  loose  pieces 
which  I  pick  up  from  anywhere.  I  cannot  hide  from  you 
any  longer  my  fear  that  they  will  separate  us  soon.  To 
tell  you  all.  My  sisters  wished  to  go  through  Hanover  on 
their  way  to  -  — .  Marshal  Podevils,  knowing  they  had 
arrived  at  Hamburg,  asked  leave  to  go  and  see  them.  The 
Duke  told  him  he  knew  my  sisters  were  there,  and  he  had 
been  informed  that  Aurora  wished  to  visit  Hanover.  He 
therefore  begged  the  Marshal  to  tell  her  with  his  compli- 
ments that  he  had  the  highest  regard  for  her,  but  she  would 
do  him  a  great  favour  in  changing  her  plans,  as  she  and 
all  her  house  had  witnessed  their  last  carnival  at  Hanover.1 
My  sister,  astonished  at  such  a  message,  which  perhaps 
was  never  before  sent  to  a  lady  of  quality,  begged  Marshal 
Podevils  in  reply  to  tell  His  Highness  that  she  had  not 
expected  such  civility  from  a  prince,  or  one  who  passed  as 
such,  and  it  was  easy  to  obey  his  commands,  as  she  had 
no  intention  of  spending  another  winter  in  Hanover,  for  the 
last  visit  gave  her  no  longing  to  return.  Her  answer  was 
smart  enough,  but  I  wish  she  had  written  it  to  Monseigneur 
le  Due,  for  Podevils  will  not  tell  it  to  him  like  that.  You 
can  see  how  far  the  power  of  that  woman  2  goes  ;  we  all 
have  to  fear  her.  She  was  waiting  for  the  Marshal  after 
his  interview  with  His  Highness  at  Luisburg,  and  said  to 
him  :  '  I  know  you  are  going  to  see  Konigsmarck's  sisters 
at  Hamburg,  and  they  tell  me  Countess  Aurora  is  coming 
to  Hanover.  I  can  allow  her  to  return  to  court  if  His 
Highness  is  willing  to  permit.it,  though  we  have  no  great 
confidence  in  her.' 3  These  are  the  exact  words  she  used, 
and  I  do  not  know  whether  they  mean  that  the  Duke  or  the 
Countess  has  no  confidence  in  her.  I  don't  think  Aurora 
cares  much  about  the  confidence  of  either  ;  her  greatest 
trouble  is  that  she  cannot  pay  her  respects  to  Madame 

1  The  Duke  evidently  thought  the  Countess  Aurora  was  coming  to  Han- 
over for  the  carnival  in  the  winter. 

'2  Countess  Platen. 

3  Contemporary  evidence  of  the  quarrel  between  Countess  Platen  and 
Aurora  is  given  in  a  letter  of  the  Electress  Sophia,  published  in  Cramer's 
Memorials  of  the  Countess  Konigsmarck. 


KONIGSMARCK  RETURNS  FROM  THE  WAR      239 

la  Princesse.  You  will  understand  how  these  things  worry 
and  distress  me.  I  have  thought  of  writing  to  Marshal 
Podevils  and  begging  him  to  tell  me  if  this  affair  was 
doing  me  harm  with  the  Duke,  as  I  should  have  to  take 
precautions,  and  adding  that  I  expect  him  to  do  me  this 
kindness  as  a  good  friend  of  our  house  ;  but  as  his  answer 
would  probably  be  to  advise  me  to  leave  [the  Duke's  service], 
I  have  not  carried  out  my  intention  without  knowing  your 
wishes,  which  are  my  law.  If,  however,  you  give  me  leave, 
you  will  see  a  fine  row,  for  I  will  avenge  myself  on  this 
insult  in  such  a  manner  that  the  whole  world  will  talk 
about  it,  though  that  pleasure  would  cost  me  dear,  for  I 
should  have  to  leave  you." 

"  AFFLEGEN.  October  -?  . 
16 

"  I  was  hindered  the  day  before  yesterday  from  finish- 
ing my  letter  by  the  alarm  that  the  French  were  going  to 
attack  Charleroy,1  but  it  came  to  nothing,  and  therefore  I 
am  able  to  write  now.  As  my  previous  letters  seem  to 
have  upset  you  so  much,  I  am  dying  to  know  what  there 
was  in  them  to  offend  you  so  greatly.  You  command  me 
to  make  the  amende  honorable ;  I  willingly  do  so.  I  am 
only  too  happy  to  find  myself  mistaken,  and  hope  you 
will  forgive  me.  The  Prince  of  Wiirtemburg's  affair  must 
have  prevented  the  Prince  of  Hesse  from  carrying  out  his 
intention  of  going  to  the  fair.  I  have  not  heard  who  went 
to  Frankfort,  but  I  think  that  ma  cherie  has  been  badly  re- 
warded for  her  trouble  in  going  to  the  fair,  for  I  hear  very 
few  men  of  quality  were  there.  You  are  good  enough  to 
say  if  I  find  anything  in  your  letters  to  vex  me  I  must  put 
it  down  to  anger :  of  course,  one  must  pardon  anything 
from  an  angry  lady,  so  tell  me,  I  pray  you,  what  shall 
I  do  to  be  reconciled  to  you?  Command  rne  and  I  will 
obey.  My  crime  is  suspicion.  Surely  it  is  only  right  and 
fair  that  I  should  tell  you  my  fears,  even  though  I  may  be 
in  the  wrong.  I  own  I  am  wrong,  and  am  ready  to  offer 
you  any  reparation.  I  have  never  sighed  'for  fresh  con- 
quests '  since  I  paid  my  court  to  you.  To  be  sure  of  your 

1  Colt's  Despatch,  Gohre,  October  17  :  "  We  have  just  heard  the  welcome 
news  that  the  French  have  failed  in  their  design  on  Charleroy ;  they  were  for 
the  most  part  sure  here  that  Charleroy  must  be  taken  ". 


240   THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

heart  is  my  only  happiness  and  desire  ;  but,  Beloved,  I  can- 
not suffer  any  rivals.  .  .  .  All  the  treasures,  all  the  pleasures, 
all  the  charms  of  the  world  will  not  lure  me  from  the  woman 
who  has  my  heart  You  may  be  sure  that  neither  kings  nor 
riches,  neither  castles  nor  all  the  tortures  of  hell,  would 
make  me  change." 

"  Six  o'clock,  from  CHARLEROY.  October  — . 

20 

"  I  sighed  a  long  time  for  your  letters.  Two  came 
yesterday.  I  opened  them  with  joy,  but  gladness  was 
soon  changed  to  direst  grief.  My  misery  is  so  great  that 
it  will  surely  drive  me  to  some  desperate  deed.  I  was  so- 
troubled  and  distraught  that  I  did  not  notice  yesterday  that 
the  King  was  looking  for  me  in  the  crowd,  and  bowed  to 
me.  Monsieur  Biilow  warned  me,  otherwise  I  should  not 
have  seen  him.  The  order  that  our  troops  are  to  go  to  the 
relief  of  Charleroy  could  not  have  come  more  a  propos,  for 
I  shall  seek  death  there,  and  so  find  relief  from  my  troubles. 
Think  only  of  yourself,  and  take  every  care  that  their  sus- 
picions may  not  get  you  into  trouble.  I  implore  you  do- 
this.  I  will  bear  all  the  disgrace  with  joy  if  only  I  see  you 
out  of  danger.  I  will  gladly  be  of  all  men  the  most  miser- 
able, I  will  give  up  the  only  woman  I  have  ever  loved  in  my 
life,  I  will  leave  the  Hanoverian  service,  and  so  be  deprived 
at  one  blow  of  my  divinity,  my  calling,  and  my  consolation. 
The  North  takes  away  from  me  the  means  of  livelihood,1 
and  even  in  play  bad  luck  persecutes  me.  See  to  what 
plight  I  have  come !  I  have  borne  ruin  and  disgrace  with 
impunity,  happy  in  the  joy  of  being  able  to  love  you  with 
a  lasting  love,  but  now  I  must  live  without  you  !  I  cannot 
do  so.  If  I  have  to  leave  you  I  must  leave  life  too. 
Charleroy  will  help  me  ;  there  I  will  seek  death  to  end 
my  sorrow.  ...  If  death  does  not  decide  my  fate,  I  will 
never  abandon  you — not  even  though  I  were  poisoned, 
massacred,  beaten  black  and  blue,  or  burned  alive.  But  I 
talk  like  a  man  who  has  lost  his  reason.  I  do  not  see  how 
in  suffering  all  these  insults  I  am  gaining  you.  I  am  only 
drawing  on  you  no  end  of  trouble.  I  must  give  you  up  ; 
but,  if  I  must  die,  I  will  die  avenging  myself  on  those  who- 
are  forcing  me  to  abandon  you. 

1  The  King  of  Sweden  was  threatening  to  confiscate  his  estates. 


KONIGSMARCK  RETURNS  FROM  THE  WAR      241 

"  My  greatest  grudge  is  against  La  Platen,  and  on  her 
I  will  avenge  myself,  for  to  her  I  attribute  all  my  misfor- 
tunes. I  will  seek  out  her  son,  pick  a  quarrel  with  him, 
and  send  him  to  the  other  world.  After  that  I  will  tell 
everybody  how  she  persecuted  me,  tell  them  also  all  the 
foolish  things  I  did  with  her,  and  then,  if  the  Duke  still 
shuts  his  eyes,  the  first  time  I  meet  her  off  her  dung-hill  I 
will  insult  her  so  publicly  that  all  her  life  long  she  will  never 
dare  to  show  her  face  again.  But  how  small  is  such  revenge 
in  comparison  with  the  harm  she  does  me !  for  she  robs  me 
of  the  only  joy  I  have  in  the  world.  I  lived  only  for  ma 
c/terie,  I  wore  her  chains  with  gladness  ;  she  was  my  joy, 
my  divinity,  my  all.  Imagine,  therefore,  the  misery  this 
jade  of  a  Platen  brings  upon  me  !  If  I  were  lord  of  creation 
I  would  offer  a  sacrifice  of  her,  and  give  her  to  the  bears  to 
eat ;  the  lions  should  suck  her  devil's  blood,  the  tigers  tear 
her  cowardly  heart  out.  I  would  spend  day  and  night 
seeking  new  torments  to  punish  her  for  her  black  infamy 
in  separating  a  man,  who  loves  to  distraction,  from  the 
object  of  his  love.  ...  I  thought  it  very  likely  they  would 
try  to  remove  me,  because  they  egged  on  my  sister  Aurora 
to  send  so  rude  an  answer  to  the  Duke.  But  as  to  what 
you  tell  me  from  the  Electress  of  Brandenburg,  don't  you 
think  she  said  it  to  see  whether  you  would  betray  yourself; 
for  I  cannot  believe  that  La  Platen  would  have  said  that  to 
her !  Should  the  Duke  come  to  hear  of  it  she  would  be 
ruined. 

"  Your  last  letter  of  the  28th  comforts  me  a  little,  for  you 
say  that  you  will  always  be  faithful  to  me,  and  all  these 
persecutions  only  serve  to  encourage  you  in  that  determina- 
tion. You  give  me  back  life.  Should  their  plan  of  sending 
me  away  from  you  come  to  anything,  we  shall  see  what  will 
happen.  I  do  not  see  any  way  for  you  to  make  me  happy 
unless  you,  some  time  or  another,  confide  in  your  mother 
that  your  love  and  my  removal  would  make  you  do  some- 
thing foolish.  That  fear  will  either  make  them  keep  me 
near  at  hand  or  send  me  to  the  other  world.  They  are 
desperate  remedies ;  but  if  one  cannot  hope,  one  .fears 
nothing.  I  know  not  if  my  dear  one  takes  my  meaning. 
"  L'envoi. — The  mischance  with  the  portrait  makes  me 
tremble.  If  I  see  you  again  I  will  take  care  to  be  hidden. 
Is  it  possible  that  you  think  your  assurances  of  love  weary 

16 


242    THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

me  ?  Your  letters  are  the  only  joy  I  have.  Continue  to 
send  them,  I  pray  you,  and  be  wise.  I  read  the  last  word 
with  as  much  joy  as  the  beginning — if  only  you  do  not 
speak  of  my  removal  or  of  your  going  away  for  some  time. 
The  sweetest  part  of  your  letter  is  where  you  ask  me  to  tell 
you  what  to  do  so  as  to  obey.  I  entreat  you,  do  not  suffer 
them  to  part  us  ;  use  every  effort  to  prevent  it,  and  if  in  the 
end  it  must  be,  come  with  me,  following  the  fate  of  Leonnisse 
and  her  chevalier ;  it  is  the  only  real  way  for  us  to  be 
happy." 

The  Princess's  letters  are  now  missing,  and  we  are  left 
to  gather  the  substance  of  them  from  Konigsmarck's  epistles. 
Apparently  the  Princess  did  not  approve  of  the  desperate 
remedies  suggested  in  his  last  letter.  As  Konigsmarck 
often  complains,  she  was  of  a  timid  disposition  and  not 
given  to  heroic  measures.  She  was  unwilling  to  take  her 
mother  into  her  confidence  ;  she  was  not  prepared  to  leave 
all  and  flee  with  her  lover,  except  as  a  last  resort,  nor  did 
she  approve  of  his  writing  to  the  Field-Marshal.  She  took 
counsel,  it  seems,  with  the  Electress  of  Brandenburg,  who, 
she  must  surely  have  realised,  had  she  reflected,  was  one  of 
her  enemies.  The  Electress,  a  clever  and  brilliant  woman, 
does  not  appear  in  an  amiable  light  in  this  affair.  Like  her 
mother  and  all  her  house,  she  despised  Sophie  Dorothea, 
but  she  seems  to  have  suspended  her  animosity  towards  her 
sister-in-law  for  a  time  from  the  pleasure  it  gave  her  to  find 
that  she  had  an  intrigue.  The  Electress  advised  her  to 
temporise ;  to  make  her  peace  with  Countess  Platen,  whose 
jealousy  was  at  the  bottom  of  the  whole  business  ;  to  advise 
Konigsmarck  to  do  the  same,  and  all  would  be  well.  The 
advice  was  unworthy,  but  the  unhappy  Princess  resolved  to 
follow  it.  It  seemed  to  her  the  only  thing  to  be  done,  and 
anything  was  preferable  to  separation  from  her  lover.  In 
her  new-found  confidence  with  the  Electress  of  Brandenburg 
she  paid  her  a  brief  visit  at  Liitzenburg,  her  beautiful  palace 
just  outside  Berlin,  now  known  as  Charlottenburg. 

Meanwhile  Konigsmarck  was  trying  in  vain  to  obtain 
his  leave  and  return  to  Hanover  and  his  divinity ;  but  on 
some  pretext  or  another  it  was  always  refused.  The  cam- 
paign was  now  at  an  end.  King  William  had  gone  back  to 
England,  the  Prince  of  Hanover  had  left  the  camp,  and  all 


KONIGSMARCK  RETURNS  FROM  THE  WAR      243 

the  electors  and  princes  had  departed  their  several  ways. 
The  Hanoverian  troops  were  sent  to  the  garrison  at  Dist, 
into  winter  quarters,  and  Konigsmarck  with  them.  Im- 
patient at  the  delay  in  getting  his  leave,  he  threatened  to 
return  to  Hanover  without  it,  though  this  would  be  tanta- 
mount to  resignation,  and  so  play  into  the  hands  of  his 
enemies.  He  writes  : — 

"  JENAPPE,  October  25. 

"  You  know  well  that  rather  than  do  anything  which 
might  displease  you  I  would  be  torn  into  a  thousand  pieces. 
I  will  therefore  not  write  to  the  Field-Marshal,  but  obey 
your  commands  in  this  as  in  other  things  ;  it  will  always  be 
a  joy  for  me  to  do  so. 

"  I  cannot  understand  what  it  means  about  my  sister 
Aurora  wishing  to  estrange  the  ducal  family.  I  am  curious 
to  know  what  she  has  done.  Since  you  wrote  so  freely  to 
Aurora,  I  hope  you  will  tell  her  to  burn  your  letters.  The 
phrase  '  kind  friend  '  in  the  mouth  of  La  Platen  has  a  hidden 
meaning  ;  it  is  evident  she  suspects  something  without  quite 
knowing  what,  for  I  am  certain  if  she  really  knew  the  least 
thing  she  would  not  fail  to  inform  those  who  ought  not  to 
know  it.  I  do  not  at  all  agree  with  the  Electress  of  Branden- 
burg's advice.  My  soul  would  be  very  base  to  pretend  sub- 
mission to  a  person  who  is  persecuting  you.  Were  it  not 
for  your  sake  I  would  make  her  pay  for  all  the  harm  she 
does  to  honest  people.  I  cannot  understand  the  Electress 
speaking  so  freely  to  you  about  me  and  La  Platen.  There 
is  something  hidden  which  I  hope  to  discover." 

"  LOUVAIN.  October  -^-. 

«7 

"  I  have  arrived  here  at  last,  but  have  not  yet  got  my 
leave.  I  don't  know  what  it  means,  for  all  the  other  officers 
who  have  asked  have  received  it.  I  am  determined,  in  case 
I  do  not  get  it,  to  demand  my  discharge.  I  may  as  well  do 
so,  since  they  seek  a  pretext  of  getting  rid  of  me,  and  I  can 
find  again  in  the  King  of  England's  service  all  I  shall  lose 
from  giving  up  this.  But  what  breaks  my  heart  is  that  all 
the  kings  in  the  world  will  not  console  me  for  the  loss  of  a 
goddess  like  you.  Alas  !  what  shall  I  do?  If  I  enter  that 
service  I  shall  see  you  rarely,  and  how  shall  I  exist?  No, 

16* 


244   THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

that  cannot  be !  I  would  rather  attach  myself  to  the  King 
of  Sweden,  for  at  any  rate  I  should  be  nearer  at  hand,  and 
could  find  means  of  seeing  you  oftener." 

"  October  27. 

"At  last  I  have  received  three  of  your  letters  at  once, 
and  am  greatly  comforted,  even  though  I  see  that  all  plot 
against  me.  I  am  more  than  satisfied  with  you,  and  1 
cannot  understand  how  you  got  it  into  your  head  that  you 
were  forgotten — you  who  are  charming  above  all  women. 
What  is  more  fervent  than  your  ardour,  more  sure  than 
your  promises,  more  touching  than  your  sighs,  more  tender 
than  your  love,  more  pleasant  than  your  company,  sweeter 
than  your  intercourse,  and,  in  fine,  more  charming  than 
your  beauty  ?  With  so  many  perfections  and  attractions, 
how  can  you  have  the  least  doubt  that  I  could  ever  leave 
you  ?  Do  not  think  it  so  light  a  matter,  for  my  heart  is 
full  of  your  charms,  and  I  respect  you  as  much  as  I  adore 
you.  I  give  myself  wholly  to  you — my  body,  my  soul,  my 
possessions,  my  honour :  1  sacrifice  all  for  the  love  of  you. 
But  even  thus  I  am  not  sure  of  you.  You  cause  me  many 
sorrows  ;  but  when  I  remember  all  our  exquisite  transports, 
all  our  sweet  violence,  I  forget  my  grief.  What  ardour, 
what  fire,  what  love  have  we  not  tasted  together  !  Shall 
we  ever  enjoy  those  precious  moments  again  ? 

"  To  answer  you  about  the  journey  you  are  making.1 
I  think  you  show  too  much  eagerness  to  go,  but  since  you 
wish  it  so  ardently  of  course  I  approve.  You  had  the  same 
wish  to  go  to  Frankfort !  If  I  were  to  tell  you  my  true 
thoughts,  I  do  not  care  too  much  for  my  lovely  one  to  seek 
places  of  amusement  at  such  an  unhappy  time  ;  but  what 
must  be,  must  be — and,  indeed,  how  can  we  prevent  it? 
To  comfort  myself  I  whispered  to  my  heart  it  was  the  very 
place  for  me  to  see  you  without  being  known ;  but  it 
answered,  '  You  will  have  only  a  moment,  and  the  rest  of 
her  day  must  needs  be  given  to  others  '. 

"  I  don't  mind  the  Electress  of  Brandenburg's  talk,  and 
the  way  you  say  you  conducted  yourself  at  her  court 
charmed  me,  though  I  cannot  quite  believe  it.  But  you 

1  Another  visit  to  Liitzenburg,  near  Berlin  ;  this  was  deferred  for  a  time 
(Colt's  Despatch). 


THE    COUNTESS    AURORA    KONIGSMARCK. 

From  the  painting  in  the  possession  of  Count  C.  G.  von  Rosen. 


KONIGSMARCK  RETURNS  FROM  THE  WAR      245 

do  not  tell  me  the  names  of  the  gallants  who  were  there, 
and  it  is  very  vexing  that  you  have  not  had  my  letters. 
The  Prince  will  not  join  the  others,  but  go  to  the  Elector 
of  Brandenburg's.  You  are  wise  perhaps  to  put  yourself 
right  in  that  quarter,  but  to  what  end  will  it  lead  you? 
You  have  not  enough  strength  of  mind  to  alter  your 
conduct.  What  do  you  mean  to  do  ?  When  we  are  the 
best  friends  in  the  world,  the  least  rumour  frightens  you 
and  makes  you  wish  I  were  ten  thousand  leagues  away; 
but  then,  when  you  reflect,  you  are  sorry  for  your  fears. 
This  continual  vacillation  does  not  help  us.  Look  at  the 
Electress  of  Brandenburg.  She  lets  the  world  talk  till  it 
is  tired — till  it  no  longer  talks  about  her.  Yet  she  has  the 
same  to  fear  as  you.1  As  long  as  they  know  nothing  posi- 
tively, all  will  work  for  the  best  if  you  are  courageous  ;  but 
the  least  thing  frightens  you.  How  then  can  I  give  you 
any  advice?  You  do  me  an  injustice  when  you  say  that 
I  am  '  engaging  in  new  conquests '.  I  swear  to  you  on  my 
oath  that  so  far  from  having  any  such  intention,  I  have 
never  been  to  visit  any  woman  except  the  wife  of  my  lieu- 
tenant-colonel, whom  I  cannot  avoid  calling  on  sometimes. 
I  did,  however,  accept  the  supper  invitation  of  the  Elector 
and  the  Count  of  Nassau,  and  many  light  ladies  were 
present,  of  whom  I  have  told  you. 

"The  tale  about  my  house  can  only  have  originated 
with  Countess  Platen,  and  she  may  one  day  have  to  pay 
very  dearly  for  her  lies.  I  could  revenge  myself  on  her 
very  well  through  Aurora's  lover,  but  I  fear  that  might  do 
harm,  and  I  should  not  like  to  go  to  that  extremity  before 
I  am  forced  to  do  so." 

"  Two  HOURS  FROM  DIST,  October  31. 

"  Here  I  am  arrived  at  my  garrison — the  most  barren 
spot  in  the  world  !  I  am  lodged  with  the  nuns  ;  they  are 
not  like  those  of  Venice,  for  they  see  only  their  nearest 
relations.  I  have  not  got  my  leave  yet,  but  that  does  not 
worry  me  much  ;  I  shall  be  consoled  if  I  get  it  soon.  I 
should  have  gone  about  it  without  fail  to-day,  only  I  have 
hurt  my  foot  and  may  have  to  rest  here  a  few  days.  Still, 

1  This  is  not  quite  fair,  for  the  Electress  of  Brandenburg  never  attached 
herself  to  one  man  in  particular  and  her  numerous  friendships  were  most  of 
them  intellectual. 


246   THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

it  makes  me  rage,  for  I  hoped  to  have  gone  before  the 
Prince's  departure  ;  now  I  cannot.  See  what  bad  luck  I 
have  !  Were  it  not  for  a  stout  heart  I  should  break  down. 
Pardon  me,  I  pray,  for  having  advised  you  to  forget  me.  I 
am  too  much  your  friend  not  to  know  I  ought  to  do  so  ; 
but  it  is  no  use.  I  cannot  give  you  up.  I  do  nothing  but 
weep.  My  beard  is  like  a  hermit's  ;  my  nails  are  as  long  as 
if  I  were  going  to  dig  up  my  grandfather.  .  .  .  When  my 
servant  was  combing  my  hair  he  found  several,  at  least 
ten  or  twelve,  grey  hairs,  which  show  how  I  take  things  to 
heart.  Farewell." 

•   •  «DIST, 


. 

November  6 


"  I  am  in  the  most  cursed  hole  in  the  world.  I  can  get 
nothing  I  want,  neither  your  letters  nor  leave  from  my 
regiment.  I  have  to-day  sent  my  equipage  to  Hanover, 
and  am  waiting  for  orders  to  start  ;  the  moment  I  get  them 
I  will  post  at  once  to  the  place  where  my  love  calls  me.  I 
am  desperate  at  waiting  so  long  for  my  leave,  and  will  give 
up  the  service  rather  than  remain  here.  If  I  am  driven  to 
that,  what  would  you  have  me  to  do?  Don't  think  you 
will  dissuade  me,  for  my  mind  is  made  up,  and  if  I  leave 
the  service  I  shall  at  least  be  able  to  see  you  secretly.  I 
remember  asking  you  whether  you  wish  me  to  wear  a  wig 
or  not  ;  as  you  haven't  answered,  I  fear  you  have  not  got 
my  letter.  I  am  not  expecting  any  more  letters  from  you 
here,  but  I  beg  you  to  arrange  so  that  I  may  find  some  at 
Hanover,  at  our  good  friend's.  Will  ma  petite  louche  write  a 
word  or  two  about  her  journey,  so  that  our  friend  may  take 
precautions.  I  cannot  live  without  you.  ...  I  have  com- 
posed a  song  in  German  about  my  lovely  one  ;  I  sang  it  at 
a  party.  I  told  the  guests  that  the  beautiful  one  was  called 
Leonnisse,  and  they  swore  that  they  would  drink  their  toasts 
to  that  name.  That  made  me  happier,  and  I  drank  with 
them.  To  make  the  wine  pleasanter,  I  found  an  old  red 
ribbon,  rather  faded,  which  I  dipped  into  it.  You  know 
from  whom  the  ribbon  comes.  This  is  the  only  hour  I 
have  had  a  little  happiness  for  three  weeks.  I  must  have 
some  if  I  am  to  live.  When  we  meet  you  will  win  me 
back  to  my  merry  mood.  No  fear  will  make  me  falter, 
no  obstacles  hinder  me  ;  dangers  will  not  weaken  me  —  on 


KONIGSMARCK  RETURNS  FROM  THE  WAR      247 

the  contrary,  they  will  increase  my  passion,  and  hindrances 
will  make  the  sweetness  all  the  greater.  That  is  how  one 
should  love.  Love  me  likewise,  and  I  shall  be  as  happy  as 
a  king." 

All  this  time  the  court  of  Hanover  was  in  great  excite- 
ment about  the  electorate.  The  desire  of  years  was  now 
at  the  point  of  realisation,  and  Duke  Ernest  Augustus  was 
daily  expecting  a  notification  from  the  Emperor  that  he 
had  been  invested  with  the  electoral  bonnet.  The  power- 
ful support  of  the  Elector  of  Brandenburg  was  now  on  his 
side.  On  the  other  hand,  his  arch-enemy,  Antony  Ulrich 
of  Wolfenbiittel,  was  plotting  with  might  and  main  against 
him,  and  pages  of  Colt's  entry  book  at  this  time  are  filled 
with  tales  of  intrigue.  The  electorate  was  trembling  in 
the  balance.  News  from  Vienna  was  alternately  good  and 
bad.  The  visit  to  Berlin  was  settled,  then  it  was  deferred, 
then  it  was  decided  upon  again.1  During  this  anxious 
period  the  Duke  of  Hanover  and  his  eldest  son  went  to 
Celle  to  take  counsel  with  Duke  George  William,  who  was 
warmly  supporting  his  brother. 

Meanwhile  Sophie  Dorothea,  who  cared  nothing  for 
electorates,  but  whose  whole  soul  was  absorbed  in  her 
secret  passion,  was  keeping  up  a  constant  correspondence 
with  Konigsmarck,  and  longing  with  eager  impatience  for 
his  return.  The  Electress's  visit,  the  return  of  the  Prince, 
and  other  matters  had  rendered  it  impossible  for  her  to  see 
Konigsmarck,  even  if  he  should  come  back  ;  but  the  visit 
of  her  husband  and  father-in-law  to  Celle  at  last  gave  her 
the  opportunity  for  which  she  yearned.  She  wrote  to 
Konigsmarck  entreating  him  to  come  to  her  at  once, 
with  leave  or  without  it.  On  receipt  of  her  letter  he  set 
out  immediately,  riding  night  and  day.  The  following 
letters  were  written  by  him  on  the  eve  of,  and  during,  the 
journey  : — 


DlST, 


October  31 
November  10' 


"  Since  you  bid  me  lose  no  time  in  coming  to  you,  I 
have  determined  to  start  at  once,  without  waiting  for 
leave,  whatever  may  happen.  It  is  not  very  prudent,  for 

1  Colt's  Despatch,  Celle,  November  i,  1692. 


248    THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

it  will  give  them  the  pretext  they  seek  ;  but  since  you 
wish  to  see  me,  I  fly,  I  rush  to  the  spot  where  you  are. 
Why  cannot  I  be  there  to-night  ?  You  relieve  me  of  my 
forebodings  by  saying  that  with  prudence  and  wisdom  we 
shall  be  able  to  outwit  our  enemies.  Let  me  know  your 
plans,  and  I  will  give  you  my  views.  My  life  and  happi- 
ness depend  on  them.  I  am  sorry  your  letters  were  de- 
layed, for  I  suck  from  them  much  sweetness.  Anima  mia, 
what  can  I  do  to  prove  my  gratitude?  How  happy  I  am, 
mine  angel,  my  divinity,  my  delight,  my  sole  consolation  ! 
Your  merits  are  beyond  all  else  in  the  world,  your  charms 
above  all  the  sex,  your  beauty  equal  to  that  of  the  goddesses. 
I  cannot  live  without  you  any  longer.  I  am  dying  to  be 
near  you  ;  but  there  are  yet  many  days.  Adieu,  my  soul, 
my  life.  Adieu." 

Pour  la  personne  connue. 

"  SUNDAY,  November  — . 
16 

"  This  is  to  give  you  warning  that  I  shall  arrive  to- 
morrow evening.  You  understand  me,  do  you  not? 
Should  this  fall  into  your  hands  before  ten  o'clock  to- 
morrow morning,  Monday,  let  me  have  a  line  or  two  from 
you.  On  receiving  your  letter  I  will  act  accordingly  ;  but 
should  you  receive  mine  after  ten  o'clock,  I  will  await  the 
usual  signal.  Farewell." 

"  [En  route,  later.] 

"  I  hoped  to  have  found  post-horses  here,  but  there  are 
none.  Therefore,  instead  of  Monday,  I  shall  not  be  with 
you  until  Tuesday,  the  8th.  Do  not  let  the  seal  alarm 
you :  I  opened  the  letter.  Though  the  hasty  journey 
will  have  tired  me  to  death,  I  cannot  let  the  night  pass 
without  throwing  myself  at  your  feet.  Do  not  refuse  me 
my  prayer,  or  I  shall  die.  You  will  see  me  in  a  mean 
guise,  but  I  hope  you  will  not  mind.  I  can  come  in 
secretly,  without  any  one  seeing  me,  and  be  hidden  as 
long  as  you  like.  I  only  wait  for  a  word  in  answer  from 
La  Confidente.  I  will  come  according  to  your  usual 
signal.  The  answer  can  be  sent  to  my  secretary.  He 
will  know  where  I  am  ;  it  will  be  given  me  without  fail. 
Farewell.  I  am  pining  for  the  hour." 


KONIGSMARCK  RETURNS  FROM  THE  WAR      249 

Thus,  after  a  week's  journey,  hindered  by  many  ob- 
stacles and  delayed  by  the  many  subterfuges,  Konigsmarck 
entered  Hanover  by  stealth  in  disguise,  and  the  same 
night,  all  travel -stained  and  weary  as  he  was,  he  found  his 
way  to  the  Princess's  chamber.  The  lovers  met  again  after 
a  separation  of  six  months.  They  were  fully  aware  of  the 
risk  they  ran.  What  tears  and  sighs  and  shadow  of  part- 
ing must  have  been  mingled  with  the  joys  of  that  brief 
hour's  reunion  ! 

The  next  day  Konigsmarck  doffed  his  disguise  and 
reported  himself  to  the  Field-Marshal.  As  he  had  left 
his  regiment  without  leave  he  fully  expected  to  be  sent 
away  to  his  estates  at  Hamburg — a  proceeding  which 
would  be  tantamount  to  his  dismissal  from  the  Hanoverian 
service.  He  had  furnished  the  pretext  his  enemies  were 
seeking  :  he  had  had  his  hour  and  was  prepared  to  pay 
the  price. 

But  the  Duke  was  away  at  Celle,  and  Marshal  Podevils 
was  Konigsmarck's  very  good  friend,  and  was  not  disposed 
to  press  too  hardly  on  his  breach  of  discipline.  Instead  of 
sending  him  to  Hamburg  he  ordered  him  to  remain  at 
Hanover.  The  lovers'  joy  was  unbounded,  and  for  a  few 
days  they  enjoyed  one  of  their  brief  spells  of  happiness, 
unalloyed  by  jealousy  and  fear.  The  story  of  this  is  told 
in  Konigsmarck's  letters. 

/  "  [HANOVER,]  Wednesday,  November  g. 

"  I  was  never  more  surprised  or  rejoiced  in  my  life  than 
at  dinner,  when  Marshal  Podevils  ordered  me  not  to  go  to 
Hamburg.  I  am  still  ignorant  of  his  reasons,  but  I  shall 
know  to-morrow.  I  asked  him  to  remember  his  orders  in 
case  they  wished  to  refuse  my  request,  that  he  might  take 
my  part.  He  reassured  me  on  that  account.  I  am  the 
happiest  man  in  the  world.  Fortune,  who  has  turned  her 
back  on  me  so  often,  shows  her  face  again,  and  I  draw  a 
good  omen.  Heaven  be  praised  if  our  sorrows  should  end 
in  this  way  and 'we  should  be  able  in  future  to  live  as  we 
wish  !  You  may  be  sure  I  slept  well  last  night,  for,  as  you 
saw,  want  of  sleep  was  depressing  me  unduly.  But  I  think 
you  made  allowance  for  a  man  overwhelmed  by  love,  grief, 
and  a  thousand  other  emotions. 

"  Last  night  makes  me  the  happiest  and  most  satisfied 


250   THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

man  in  the  world.  Your  embraces  showed  me  your  tender- 
ness, and  I  could  not  doubt  your  love.  They  still  talk 
much  about  the  journey  to  Berlin,  and  flatter  themselves 
that  the  business  at  Vienna  will  end  as  they  wish.1  Je 
reste  inviolablement  a  vous" 

If  Konigsmarck  were  to  remain  unmolested  at  Hanover, 
it  was  necessary  that  he  should  win  again  the  good-will  of 
the  Countess  Platen  and  lull  to  rest  her  jealous  suspicions.. 
She  was  all-powerful,  and,  acting  on  the  advice  of  the 
Electress  of  Brandenburg,  Sophie  Dorothea  sought  to- 
conciliate  her,  and  again  advised  Konigsmarck  to  do  the 
same.  He  at  first  refused  with  real  or  simulated  indigna- 
tion, but  eventually  yielded,  and  made  his  peace  with  her. 
The  lovers  then  enjoyed  a  period  of  comparative  immunity. 
Every  person  about  the  court  was,  in  fact,  too  much  occupied 
with  business  of  high  political  importance  to  heed  them 
and  their  affairs.  Would  the  Duke  of  Hanover  go  to- 
Berlin,  or  would  he  not  ?  Would  the  Emperor  invest  him. 
with  the  electorate,  or  would  he  not  ?  These  were  the  all- 
absorbing  questions  at  Hanover.  One  was  soon  answered 
in  the  affirmative.  On  December  2  the  Duke  of  Hanover 
set  out  for  Berlin,  accompanied  by  the  Prince.  Princess 
Sophie  Dorothea  was  to  have  gone  too,  but  at  the  eleventh 
hour,  as  she  wished  to  remain  with  Konigsmarck,  she 
feigned  illness.  Her  ruse  was  completely  successful.  The 
court  physician  was  called  in,  and  the  Princess  was  declared 
unfit  to  travel,  kept  at  Hanover,  and  made  to  undergo  a 
course  of  treatment.  Konigsmarck  writes  : — 

"  [HANOVER,  November.] 

"  On  rising  from  my  mattress,  which  I  found  the  softest 
bed  of  down,  they  gave  me  your  letter,  wherein  I  found,, 
what  I  knew  before,  the  most  constant  love  in  the  world. 
Your  many  virtues  set  you  above  the  goddesses,  and  your 
constancy  raises  you  above  your  sex.  I  note  that  your 
answer  to  the  one  [Electress  of  Brandenburg]  who  pro- 
posed you  should  make  it  up  with  La  Platen,  was  to  the 
effect  that  if  the  Duke  ordered  it  you  would  obey,  though 
you  did  not  see  to  what  end.  You  ask  me  my  feeling 

1  The  visit  to  the  Elector  of  Brandenburg  at  Berlin  and  the  Electoral 
investiture  at  Vienna  by  the  Emperor. 


KONIGSMARCK  RETURNS  FROM  THE  WAR      251 

about  the  matter.  I  would  never  advise  you  to  do  such  a 
thing,  for  it  is  beneath  noble  souls.  But  what  grieves  me 
is  that  while  you  think  it  a  mean  action  on  your  part, 
you  advise  me  to  do  it.  I  believe  you  wish  to  try  me, 
and  so  I  forgive  you  ;  otherwise  I  should  be  very  angry 
with  you  for  wishing  me  to  do  a  despicable  thing.  Don't 
imagine  I  will  consent.  I  will  not  budge  an  inch  from 
my  determination  for  all  the  countesses  in  the  world  ;  but 
I  am  willing  to  aid  your  plan,  since  you  hope  for  a  happy 
ending.  I  am  willing  to  be  civil  to  her,  even  friendly,  as 
in  former  times,  if  she  be  civil  to  me  ;  but  never  could  I 
make  her  believe  I  liked  her,  hating  her  as  I  do.  Fie ! 
it  is  beneath  me.  My  transports  of  delight  when  I  held 
you  in  my  arms  prevented  me  from  realising  the  full  force 
of  your  proposition  ;  I  find  it  so  much  beneath  me  that 
I  refuse  altogether,  and  beg  you  will  say  no  more  about 
it.  How  can  I  thank  you,  angel  mine,  for  all  your  sweet 
favours  ?  You  have  made  me  the  happiest  man  in  the 
world." 

"  November. 

"  You  could  not  have  given  me  pleasanter  news.  Though 
the  journey  will  not  take  place,1  I  still  owe  you  the  same 
debt,  but  with  this  difference — if  they  shatter  themselves 
with  their  politics,  we  shall  not  risk  the  same  chance  of 
being  discovered.  That  may  easily  come  to  pass  ;  indeed 
I  hope  to  God  they  will  break  each  other  up.  But, 
Madame,  my  joy  is  not  without  alloy,  for  Prince  Ernest 
told  me  that  the  Prince  assured  him,  if  the  journey  to 
Berlin  fell  through,  he  would  go  to  Aller.  However,  I 
would  rather  see  you  there  than  run  the  risk  of  being  sent 
away  from  you,  which  would  surely  happen  if  we  were 
discovered.  My  ill-luck  follows  me,  and  I  see  no  hope  of 
being  luckier  in  the  future.  I  could  most  certainly  have 
come  to  you  last  night,  but  La  Dondon  2  whispered  to 
the  Duchess's  valet-de-chambre,  and  I  thought  they  were 
whispering  about  us,  so  I  made  up  my  mind  to  deprive 
myself  of  the  happiness  of  being  with  you.  I  am  very 
grateful  to  you  for  promising  to  appear  this  evening.  Do 

1  The  journey  to  Berlin  was  postponed  (vide  Colt's  Despatch,  Novem- 
ber 18). 

2  La  Dondon,  the  plump  woman,  a  lady-in-waiting. 


252    THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

come,  that  I  may  see  the  divine  eyes  that  give  me  light. 
If  you  suffered  at  the  comedy,  I  suffered  more.  I  was  dying 
to  look  at  you,  for  I  found  you  more  beautiful  than  ever  ; 
but  I  dared  not  give  my  eyes  that  delight  for  fear  of  spoil- 
ing everything. 

"  The  journey  to  Hamburg  depends  on  your  commands, 
and  I  will  take  them  from  your  lips  this  evening.  At  the 
same  time  I  will  tell  you  all  about  my  interview  with  La 
Platen  —  to  rejoice  you.  I  will  only  tell  you  now  that  at 
first  our  conversation  was  interrupted  by  her  tears  of  rage, 
but  I  found  a  way  of  changing  them  to  loving  looks  at 
your  bidding.  This  was  an  outrage  on  my  love  for  you,  for 
which  I  mean  to  see  you  at  my  feet  begging  my  pardon. 
You  cannot  love  me  as  much  as  I  love  you,  for  at  your 
bidding  I  have  with  her  sinned  against  my  love  for  you." 


ig 
y 


..  November  29 
December  g' 

"  I  have  heard  nothing  of  your  illness  except  that  the 
Duchess  told  me  you  were  very  unwell,  and  the  Prince  said 
so  too  ;  in  fact,  every  one  thinks  you  are  quite  unequal  to 
the  journey.  Mind  you  do  not  undeceive  them  !  Every- 
thing goes  well  up  to  now  ;  my  throat  is  rather  swollen,  but 
that  will  not  hinder  me  from  seeing  you,  if  you  wish  it, 
to-morrow  evening.  I  am  sorry  you  are  so  triste  :  why 
cannot  I  be  with  you  to  make  you  forget  your  pains  ?  But, 
beloved,  remember  you  are  making  the  effort  for  a  man 
who  will  be  ever  grateful  to  you,  and  who  is  convinced  that 
he  is  loved  by  the  sweetest  woman  in  the  world.  To-night, 
between  six  and  seven  o'clock,  I  shall  write  to  you  again. 
Farewell." 

[<  A  i.      i.  November  30      ,- 
"About  _          ,          ,  1692. 
December  10 

"Poor  child!  what  are  you  not  suffering?  To  be 
rubbed  1  without  being  ill  is  too  much  !  I  am  really  un- 
worthy of  the  pain  you  are  undergoing,  and  am  quite 
crushed  by  all  you  tell  me  of  your  sufferings.  Can  I  do 
nothing  to  deserve  all  you  do  for  me  ?  I  call  to  witness  all 

1  "  Pauvre  enfant  !  Que  ne  souffrez-vous  point  !  Suer,  se  faire  frotter, 
sans  avoir  de  mal  e'en  est  trop."  Apparently  a  seventeenth-century  form  of 
massage. 


KONIGSMARCK  RETURNS  FROM  THE  WAR       255 

my  tenderness,  my  love,  my  overwhelming  passion,  my 
devotion,  hoping  thus  to  be  worthy.  I  would  sacrifice  my- 
self a  thousand  thousand  times,  only  too  happy  to  seal 
with  my  blood  the  love  I  bear  you,  counting  it  an  honour 
to  lose  my  life  for  so  sweet  a  woman.  If  my  stupid  verses 
can  divert  you  and  make  you  laugh,  here  they  are.  I  will 
compose  some  every  day  : — 

Du  sagst  Du  liebst  mich, 

Und  ich  anbet'  Dich, 

Da  sind  wir  Beide  vergniigt,  etc. 

"  I  have  heard  nothing  new.  The  news  from  Vienna  is 
good  ;  they  expect  the  courier  every  moment.  The  Prince 
is  going ;  and  every  one  pities  you,  poor  dear !  they  are 
quite  sure  you  are  unable  to  go.  Up  till  now  everything 
goes  on  well.  Tell  me  if  you  think  it  possible  for  us  to- 
meet  to-morrow.  They  certainly  spy  upon  us,  but  if  we 
fear  no  surprises,  pour  I  amour  de  Dieu  let  me  see  you !  I 
cannot  live  so  many  days  without  a  glimpse  of  you.  I 
would  rather  die  than  lose  my  love." 

"  December  — . 

ii 

"  I  could  learn  nothing  about  your  journey.  La  Rose x 
said  he  thought  it  would  be  very  inadvisable  for  you  to 
travel,  for  your  illness  might  come  from  your  being  enceinte, 
and  travelling  would  be  hurtful  to  you — even  dangerous. 
La  Court  said  she  did  not  believe  the  Prince  would  go  ; 
but  one  cannot  be  sure  about  that — the  only  sure  thing  is 
that  you  must  stop  where  you  are.  I  will  tell  you  more 
to-morrow.  Arrange  for  some  one  to  wait  for  me  in  the 
gallery  at  half-past  eleven.  I  will  write  to  you  all  I  know, 
and  you  may  be  sure  that  after  the  sweet  privileges  you 
have  given  me  I  could  never  change.  On  the  contrary,  I 
love  you  a  thousand  times  more  every  day.  Your  charms 
fire  me  so  much  that  I  can  hardly  live.  I  have  the  sweetest 
dreams  about  you.  Farewell  until  to-morrow." 

The  Duke  of  Hanover's  journey  was  wholly  successful, 
and  if  gratified  ambition  can  make  a  man  happy  he  returned 
to  Hanover  a  happy  man.  The  labours  and  the  intrigues 

1  La  Rose  was  the  court  physician. 


254    THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

of  years  were  at  last  crowned  with  success,  the  dearest 
object  of  his  life  was  granted — he  came  back  Elector.  The 
news  was  eagerly  expected.  Colt  writes :  "  A  courier  is 
come  hither  with  the  welcome  news  that  the  electoral  bonnet 
was  given  on  the  Qth,  and  just  now  we  have  had  advice  that 
the  new  Elector  will  be  here  this  day  ".l 

The  new  Elector  arrived  as  advised,  and  the  whole  city 
turned  out  to  meet  him.  His  entry  was  a  triumphal  pro- 
cession. There  were  great  court  ceremonials  :  all  the  foreign 
envoys  went  in  state  to  pay  their  respects  to  the  Elector ; 
there  was  a  general  thanksgiving  in  the  churches  and  much 
firing  of  cannon. 

In  the  court  functions  Sophie  Dorothea — henceforth  to 
rank  as  the  Electoral  Princess — was  called  upon  to  play 
her  part.  As  she  was  naturally  fond  of  gaiety,  there  is  no 
doubt  she  rapidly  recovered  from  her  "  illness,"  and  entered 
with  zest  into  the  spirit  of  the  festival.  Equally  certain  is 
it  that  Konigsmarck's  jealousy  was  again  aroused.  He 
made  little  or  no  excuse  for  the  exigencies  of  her  position, 
and  indeed  would  seem  to  have  resented  her  access  of  rank 
as  a  personal  affront ;  he  was  certainly  jealous  of  her 
husband,  if  we  may  judge  from  the  following  remonstrance, 
•which  is  perhaps  better  given  in  the  French  : — 

"December,  1692. 

"  Princesse  Electorale  !  L'on  peut  a  present  vous  nom- 
jiier  comme  cela.  car  apparemment  le  prince  Electoral  vous 
aura  investie  de  ce  titre  d'honneur  cette  nuit  passee.  Les 
•embrassades  sont-elles  plus  charmantes  quand  on  est  dans 
ce  rang !  .  .  .  Je  ne  peux  dormir  de  rage,  qu'un  prince 
electoral  me  prive  du  plaisir  de  voir  ma  charmante  maitresse. 
Je  vous  aurai  felicite  aujourd'hui  de  votre  nouvelle  dignite, 
mais  je  doute  que  votre  epoux  ait  fait  son  devoir,  aujourd'hui, 
•car  si  Ton  doit  juger  de  son  empressement  pour  vous  revoir, 
1'investiture  ne  sera  faite  qu'a  six  heures  du  matin.  Je 
souhaite  que  celle-ci  vous  soit  rendue  immediatement  apres 
vous  aurez  en  fraiche  memoire  les  plaisirs  electorate.  .  .  . 
Helas  !  je  n'oserais  vous  faire  souvenir  de  ceux  que  nous 
-avons  eus  ensemble  ;  ils  vous  paraitront  si  minces  (je  me 
sers  du  mot  mince,  parce  qu'une  chanson  dit :  '  Helas,  mon 

1  Colt's  Despatch,  December  20,  1692. 


KONIGSMARCK  RETURNS  FROM  THE  WAR      255 

prince,  que  vos  amours  sont  minces  ')  que  vous  n'en  aurez 
plus  1'ideV' 

This  letter  brings  the  correspondence  to  a  close  for  a 
time.  Soon  after  the  court  festivities  consequent  on  the 
Electorate  came  to  a  close,  and  Konigsmarck  left  on  a  visit 
to  his  estates  near  Hamburg. 

The  year  1692  ended  brilliantly  for  the  House  of  Han- 
over. 


CHAPTER  XIX. 

THE  TRYST  AT  BROCKHAUSEN. 

O  friend  of  all  true  lovers — tender  Night ! 

O  solace  of  the  dark  !  O  comforter  ! 
Cover  us  in  from  the  too  garish  light 

With  curtains  that  no  curious  breathings  stir. 
Hem  us  about,  and  set  thy  stars  to  stand, 

That  none  may  come  us  nigh  to  hear  or  see 
How  mouth  seeks  trembling  mouth  and  hand  holds  hand, 

Or  what  low  whisperings  of  wonder  be. 
Cover  us  in,  and  keep  us  well  from  harm  ; 

Let  us  lie  surely  in  thy  shelter  fair 
(Even  as  my  love  lies  safe  within  my  arm, 

Content  to  find  her  present  Heaven  there) : 
And  we  will  tell  thee  all  our  secrets  sweet 

Ere  Day  binds  sunny  sandals  on  thy  feet. 

W.  A.  MACKENZIE,  in  the  Pall  Mall  Gazette.1 

THE  future  was  casting  dark  shadows  along  the  path  of 
the  Princess  and  her  lover  throughout  the  year  1693.  Their 
meetings  were  brief  and  stolen  ;  their  partings  anxious  and 
prolonged — a  foretaste  of  that  long  parting  when  they  would 
meet  no  more.  The  letters  which  passed  between  the  lovers 
during  the  first  five  months  of  this  year  apparently  did  not 
find  their  way  into  the  hands  of  Aurora,  and  are  therefore 
not  preserved  in  this  collection.  It  is,  moreover,  difficult 
to  follow  the  movements  of  the  courts  of  Hanover  and 
Celle  during  this  period,  for  Colt,  our  invaluable  guide, 
went  to  Dresden  in  January  to  invest  the  Elector  of  Saxony 
with  the  Order  of  the  Garter,  and  remained  many  months. 
The  English  envoy  had  also  to  meet  the  Saxon  demands 
in  return  for  the  aid  the  Elector  was  to  give  William  and 
the  Allies  in  the  forthcoming  campaign.  This  occupied 
him  until  May,  when  he  returned  to  Celle,  and  soon  after 
the  campaign  began  simultaneously  in  Flanders  and  in 
the  Palatinate.  The  Electoral  Prince  of  Hanover  went 

1  By  permission. 
256 


THE  TRYST  AT  BROCKHAUSEN  257 

with  the  Hanoverian  troops  to  Flanders,  and  the  Elector 
of  Saxony  led  his  troops  to  the  Palatinate. 

Konigsmarck  went  neither  to  Flanders  nor  the  Rhine, 
but  remained  at  Hanover,  despite  the  fact  that  his  position 
had  become  more  and  more  precarious.  Whispers-  of  his 
intrigue  with  the  Princess  ran  around  the  court ;  he  was 
out  of  favour  with  those  in  authority,  the  Elector  treated 
him  with  marked  coldness.  Yet  he  could  not  tear  himself 
away  from  the  Princess,  and  would  not  quit  the  Hanoverian 
service,  as  it  gave  him  the  pretext  for  keeping  near  her. 
For  Konigsmarck  to  remain  in  the  Hanoverian  army  meant 
ruin  ;  he  had  no  hope  of  promotion,  and  if  the  intrigue 
were  discovered  it  would  probably  mean  his  imprisonment 
or  death,  certainly  his  banishment.  His  financial  affairs 
were  neglected,  and  this,  added  to  his  gambling  and  ex- 
travagant living,  made  him  very  short  of  ready  money ; 
while,  to  make  matters  worse,  the  King  of  Sweden,  who 
(with  Denmark)  was  now  quarrelling  with  the  Brunswick 
princes  to  a  point  which  looked  like  open  war,  threatened 
to  confiscate  his  lands  unless  he  quitted  the  service  of  an 
unfriendly  prince.  The  outlook  could  hardly  have  been 
gloomier,  and  Konigsmarck  gained  little  to  compensate  him 
for  the  risks  he  was  running.  Since  the  beginning  of  the 
year  there  had  been  an  obvious,  though  unexpressed,  deter- 
mination on  the  part  of  those  in  authority  to  keep  him  and 
the  Princess  apart.  In  January  he  went  to  Hamburg.  On 
his  return  to  Hanover  the  Princess  was  sent  to  Celle,  and 
she  did  not  return  until  the  preparations  for  the  campaign 
were  well  advanced.  It  was  expected  that  Konigsmarck 
would  serve  in  the  campaign  in  Flanders  as  he  had  served 
the  year  before  ;  but  he  excused  himself  on  divers  grounds 
— the  hope  of  being  near  the  Princess  through  the  summer, 
while  the  Electoral  Prince  was  away,  was  too  tempting  for 
him  to  resist.  There  may  have  been  another  reason,  too, 
for  last  year  he  had  contracted  heavy  gambling  debts  in 
Flanders  which  were  not  yet  paid. 

Under  ordinary  circumstances  it  would  have  been  diffi- 
cult for  Konigsmarck  to  have  had  himself  excused,  but  it 
so  happened  that  there  was  a  possibility  of  his  services 
being  required  nearer  home.  The  kings  of  Sweden  and 
Denmark,  always  uncertain,  had  practically  withdrawn  from 
the  Alliance,  and  were  now  threatening  hostilities,  more 


258   THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

particularly  against  Hanover  and  Celle.  Their  demands 
not  being  satisfied,  the  Danes  gathered  their  troops  around 
Ratzeburg,  in  Saxe-Lauenburg,  a  fortified  town  north-east 
of  Hamburg,  not  far  from  the  Holstein  frontier.  Only 
three  years  before,  when  the  Duke  of  Celle  inherited  Saxe- 
Lauenburg,  as  he  feared  his  warlike  neighbours,  he  had 
repaired  the  fortifications  of  Ratzeburg  at  great  expense. 
The  Danes  and  the  Swedes,  seeking  a  pretext  for  war,  now 
found  a  menace  in  these  fortifications,  and  demanded  their 
demolition.  This  demand  the  Emperor  was  disposed  to 
grant ;  but  the  Duke  of  Celle  and  the  Elector  of  Hanover 
strongly  resisted  it,  and  it  looked  as  though  they  would 
have  to  send  troops  to  the  aid  of  the  fortress,  and  in  that 
event  (which  at  first  seemed  very  unlikely)  Konigsmarck 
volunteered  his  services. 

Whatever  the  lovers'  hopes  were  of  remaining  near  one 
another  throughout  the  summer,  they  were  doomed  to 
speedy  disappointment.  No  sooner  had  the  Electoral 
Prince  set  out  for  Flanders  early  in  June  than  the  Electoral 
Princess,  much  against  her  will,  was  hurried  away  from 
Hanover  to  Luisburg,  and  she  remained  there,  under  the 
eyes  of  the  Elector  and  Electress,  until  she  went  to  Brock- 
hausen  on  a  visit  to  her  parents,  who  were  almost  as  vigilant. 
But,  despite  all  obstacles,  the  lovers  found  a  way  to  meet, 
and  one  night,  at  Brockhausen,  a  country  house  of  the 
Duke  of  Celle's,  the  Chevalier  came  to  his  Leonnisse.  The 
outlines  of  the  tryst  are  given  ;  it  needs  but  little  imagina- 
tion to  fill  in  the  picture.  The  warm  June  night  .  .  .  the 
air  heavy  with  the  scent  of  the  limes  .  .  .  the  cavalier 
hidden  amid  the  trees  .  .  .  the  signal,  the  soft  low  whistle 
.  .  .  the  Princess  stealing  through  the  dusk  to  meet  her 
lover.  ...  It  is  the  tale  of  Tristan  and  Isolde  over  again. 

The  correspondence  in  this  chapter  opens  on  the  day 
when  the  Princess  was  sent  to  Luisburg,  and  the  letters  are 
those  which  passed  between  the  lovers  through  June  while 
she  was  at  Luisburg  and  Brockhausen.  They  are  largely 
taken  up  with  the  possible  gallantry  of  Prince  Max,  a  lover's 
quarrel  because  Konigsmarck  went  to  a  supper  party  at  the 
Countess  Platen's,  a  reconciliation  and  subsequent  meeting. 

Save  for  the  stolen  visit  to  Brockhausen,  Konigsmarck 
was  all  the  time  at  Hanover,  holding  himself  in  readiness 
to  march  against  the  Danes  if  need  be.  Perhaps  the  most 


THE  TRYST  AT  BROCKHAUSEN  259 

noteworthy  point  in  the  letters  is  the  conduct  of  the  wily 
Electress1  in  praising  Konigsmarck  to  her  daughter-in-law. 
Her  only  possible  object  could  have  been  to  sound  poor 
Sophie  Dorothea,  who  readily  fell  into  the  trap,  and  no 
doubt  betrayed  herself  much  more  than  she  admits. 

The  Princess  to  Konigsmarck. 

"[LuiSBURG,]  Thursday,  June  8,  1693. 

"  I  arrived  here  in  great  distress  ;  I  cannot  tell  you  the 
anguish  I  suffered  after  we  parted.  The  thought  that  I 
may  not  see  you  for  three  months  robs  me  of  happiness. 
I  am  continually  reproaching  myself  for  not  having  said 
more  to  you — for  having  lost  those  precious  moments. 
But  I  thought  the  other  coach  was  following  me,  and  my 
grief  was  so  great  that  I  never  dreamt  of  asking  about  it, 
and  I  was  walking  slowly,  waiting  for  my  ring. 

"  To  crown  my  misery,  I  found  they  had  put  Max 
next  to  me,  in  the  room  belonging  to  my  husband.  I 
wanted  so  much  to  go  to  bed  when  I  got  here.  I  was 
quite  broken  down,  and  had  such  a  headache  I  could 
scarcely  hold  up.  Imagine  my  astonishment  when  I 
found  everything  in  uproar  and  disorder,  for  my  servants 
had  not  had  the  wit  to  prepare  anything,  although  they 
knew  my  wishes,  as  well  as  I  know  yours.  It  was  most 
careless  and  impertinent  of  them.  I  do  not  ever  remember 
having  been  so  angry.  Every  one  was  at  supper  when 
I  arrived.  I  sent  word  to  the  major-domo  to  change 
my  rooms  quickly,  as  I  absolutely  refused  to  have  those 
arranged.  He  raised  very  absurd  difficulties,  and  excused 
himself  by  saying  he  had  only  obeyed  the  Elector's  orders. 
At  last  I  ordered  Kopstein  to  come.  You  would  have 
laughed  much  had  you  seen  me,  for  I  was  very  angry,  and 
rated  him  soundly.  He  went  and  spoke  to  the  Elector, 
and  came  back  presently  to  tell  me  that  if  the  suite  of 
apartments  were  three  times  as  large  it  would  be  for  me 
alone,  and  gave  orders  that  Max  should  be  lodged  in  the 
other  house.  I  hear  Max  was  mighty  civil,  and  would  not 
let  his  people  do  anything  without  knowing  whether  I 
approved.  If  the  Elector  had  not  sent  me  a  proper  answer, 

1  The  Duchess  Sophia,  henceforth  known  as  the  Electress,  and  Duke 
Ernest  Augustus  as  the  Elector. 

17  * 


260   THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

I  should  have  gone  away  to-day — reason  would  have  said 
to  Brockhausen,  but  my  heart  would  have  whispered  to 
you,  and  I  know  not  whether  my  heart  would  have  pre- 
vailed over  my  reason.  I  should  have  spent  the  night,  on 
my  own  authority,  in  the  apartments  opposite,  which  they 
say  are  reserved  for  my  father,  but  it  is  rumoured  are  kept 
for  La  Platen.  However,  I  am  as  I  would  be,  away  from 
all  company  ;  and  the  Electress's  [plan]  has  fallen  through 
also,  so  I  have  nothing  more  to  fear.  I  saw  no  one  yester- 
day except  those  I  have  mentioned,  and  I  have  seen  no 
one  to-day.  I-  shall  not  go  out.  I  prefer  to  be  alone  and 
give  myself  up  to  my  tears,  which  are  even  more  abundant 
to-day  than  yesterday.  As  long  as  I  was  able  to  see  you 
I  did  not  realise  what  our  separation  meant,  but  now  I  have 
no  hope — no  comfort  in  the  world.  Grand  Dieu  !  why  am 
I  fated  to  be  separated  from  such  a  lover  as  you  ?  How 
sensible  I  am  of  your  love  and  tenderness  ! — they  are 
graven  on  my  heart  and  memory  for  ever.  ...  I  longed 
to  write  to  you  last  night,  but  I  could  not,  as  I  had  neither 
paper  nor  ink.  I  was  very  much  vexed,  for  it  would  have 
relieved  me  to  have  sat  down  and  poured  out  to  you  the 
immensity  of  my  pain  and  my  passion.  Adieu,  mon  enfant 
adorable.  I  must  end,  not  through  my  heart's  fault — it  is 
so  full  that  I  should  never  end — but  because  my  eyes  hurt 
me  so  much." 

Konigsmarck  to  the  Princess. 

"  HANOVER,  June  8. 

"  My  grief  is  greater  now  than  when  we  parted.  Your 
tender  caresses  kept  me  from  realising  all  our  separation 
meant  at  the  moment ;  but  now,  alas  !  I  am  the  most  miser- 
able man  alive.  I  love,  I  am  loved  ;  my  mistress  is  loving, 
constant,  and  true  :  yet  1  cannot  hope  for  happy  days.  Oh  ! 
cruel  Love,  for  whom  dost  thou  keep  thy  sweetness  ? — for 
the  inconstant  and  those  who  love  not  truly  ?  It  seems  so, 
for  were  love's  sweetness  for  the  constant,  we  should  surely 
taste  more  of  it.  If  my  sorrow  is  so  overwhelming  now, 
when  I  am  only  five  leagues  from  you,  what  will  it  be  when 
the  fatal  day  dawns  for  my  departure  ?  Every  thousand 
paces  will  plant  a  dagger  in  my  heart,  and  before  I  join  the 
army  my  sobs  will  have  stifled  me.  But  I  will  gladly  suffer 


THE  TRYST  AT  BROCKHAUSEN  261 

torments,  and  chance  all  the  odds  of  changeable  Fate,  if  I 
can  only  see  you  again  as  before,  lovable,  passionate,  con- 
stant, charming,  gracious,  and  true.  Give  me  but  the  hope 
of  our  meeting,  and  I  can  endure  all  the  cruel  woes  a  cruel 
absence  can  cause.  I  curse  the  day  it  entered  my  mind  to 
ask  permission  to  go  to  the  war.  Dieu  !  can  I  truly  love 
you  when  I  take  so  false  a  step  ?  Hate  me,  see  me  no  more 
in  your  life,  forbid  the  very  mention  of  my  name,  keep  my 
letters  no  more,  treat  me  like  a  dog,  like  the  meanest  of 
men, — I  deserve  it  all !  But  what  advice  am  I  giving  you  ? 
Grand  Dieu  !  I  shudder  when  I  reflect.  Were  you  to  take 
me  at  my  word,  what  would  become  of  me?  Be  generous,* 
forgive  my  fault,  have  pity  on  me,  for  I  am  losing  my  head 
and  know  not  what  I  say. 

"  I  send  herein  the  numbers,1  which  are  rather  meagre  ; 
but  never  mind — the  rest  will  follow.  I  cannot  conceal  from 
you  a  misfortune  that  befell  me  last  night.  La  Platen,  to 
damn  me,  sent  to  beg  me  to  come  to  supper  in  the  castle 
behind  the  mill.  I  pretended  to  be  ill,  but  as  she  insisted 
and  sent  a  second  time,  I  went,  for  fear  she  might  guess  the 
cause  of  my  sadness.  What  bondage  !  " 

The  Princess  to  Konigsmarck. 
"[LUISBURG,]  Friday,  June  — ,  One  o'clock  after  midnight. 

"  I  did  not  expect  to  get  any  news  from  you  so  soon, 
so  picture  my  joy  when  I  received  a  thick  packet.  Alas ! 
my  joy  did  not  last  long,  for  if  the  beginning  of  your  letter 
is  delightful,  the  end  of  it  is  much  the  reverse.  I  should 
have  written  to  you  even  if  I  had  not  received  it,  for  my 
only  pleasure  is  to  make  you  remember  me,  and  I  could 
not  go  to  bed  without  assuring  you  of  my  love  and  faithful- 
ness. I  am  heartbroken  at  not  being  able  to  see  you,  and 
until  we  meet  again  I  shall  find  no  relief  from  my  sorrows. 
But  I  don't  know  why  I  tell  you  all  this  :  you  do  not  feel 
the  same  towards  me,  as  your  conduct  shows  only  too  well. 
I  am  not  at  all  pleased  with  you  for  going  to  La  Platen's 
supper  party  ;  it  pierces  me  to  the  heart.  You  have 
certainly  a  command  over  your  feelings  which  I  cannot 
hope  to  imitate.  It  would  not  have  been  possible  for  me 
to  have  shown  my  face  at  a  party  the  very  day  we  bade 

1  This  refers  to  the  second  cypher — in  numbers. 


farewell,  but  I  am  sure  you  concealed  your  emotions  so  well 
that  no  one  suspected  you  of  sorrow.  I  do  not  wish  to 
reproach  you,  but  if  it  be  true  that  you  love  me,  you  should 
be  sorry  for  showing  it  so  little.  Surely  I  deserve  better 
of  you,  for  the  way  I  live  and  the  sorrow  I  suffer  might  let 
you  deprive  yourself  of  a  little  amusement.  I  can  hide  my 
grief  so  little  that  Sitardie  to-day  asked  me  the  cause  of 
my  sadness,  and  then  he  went  on  to  say  he  was  going  to 
compose  a  lament  on  your  absence !  I  came  late  from  my 
room,  and  went  only  a  moment  to  see  the  company  playing 
cards.  The  Elector  wants  me  to  take  a  hand  at  Neike  (?), 
-so  that  he  may  play  with  me  ;  Ilten  to  be  a  third.  I  shall 
keep  out  of  his  way,  for  I  have  not  the  same  command 
over  my  feelings  as  you.  I  drove  out  with  the  Electress. 
We  were  quite  alone,  and  she  spoke  of  you  and  said  you 
were  tres  gentiL  Balati *  offered  me  his  hand  when  I  came 
down  to  supper.  I  should  have  refused  him  had  I  dared, 
for  it  suffices  that  he  is  no  friend  of  yours  for  me  to  hate 
him.  After  supper  I  kept  close  to  the  Electress  ;  she  went 
to  the  table,  and  the  game  ended  a  moment  after.  I  retired 
as  soon  as  I  could,  and  walked  with  La  Confidente  under 
the  trees  near  the  palace.  See  the  difference  between  my 
conduct  and  yours,  and  think  how  much  my  love  is  above 
yours.  I  shun  everybody,  I  am  careful  over  the  smallest 
trifle  ;  yet,  no  sooner  am  I  gone  than  you  forget  your  vows 
and  console  yourself  with  a  woman  who  hates  me.  No  ! 
Nothing  can  excuse  your  conduct,  nothing  can  be  more 
unkind.  You  had  no  end  of  pretexts  for  declining  that 
supper  party,  yet  you  went.  I  tremble  for  the  future. 
What  will  it  be,  Grand  Dieu  !  in  a  few  months,  if  you  can 
do  such  a  thing  on  the  very  day  I  leave  ?  You  are  so 
easily  comforted.  I  cannot  write  more — for  my  tears." 

"  L'envoi,  the  next  morning. 

"  I  have  not  slept  a  wink  ;  my  eyes  are  as  big  as  fists, 
and  I  dare  not  show  myself  in  public.  La  pauvre  Confi- 
dente is  pale  because  I  fret  so  ;  she  sleeps  in  the  small 
room  next  me,  and  I  woke  her  up  at  five  o'clock  in  the 
morning.  1  am  still  in  bed  in  agonies  of  despair  at  your 
conduct ;  it  shows  so  little  love  for  me.  I  cannot  be  com- 

1  The  French  envoy. 


THE  TRYST  AT  BROCKHAUSEN  263 

forted,  for  it  was  the  last  thing  I  expected — a  thunderbolt 
would  not  have  astounded  me  more.  Was  not  your 
absence  enough  to  bear?  Why  do  you  crush  me  with 
such  cruelty?  I  should  like  La  Rose's  opinion  to  come 
true,  but  I  don't  expect  it.  Adieu,  Monsieur.  I  wish  you 
many  pleasures  ;  no  doubt  you  will  find  fresh  ones  every 
day,  and  forget  all  about  me." 

Konigsmarck  to  the  Princess. 

"  HANOVER,  fune  — . 

J         20 

"  Once  on  a  time  I  was  wont  to  complain  that  I  did  not 
dream  of  you  ;  but  now,  thank  Heaven,  not  a  night  goes  by 
but  I  dream  of  you  only.  A  poet  has  composed  these  lines 
on  my  dream  delights  : — 

L'autre  jour  j'aper^us  en  songe 
Celle  qui  cause  mes  soupirs, 
Qui  consentait  a  mes  desirs  ; 
Mais  tout  cela  n'est  qu'un  mensonge. 
Ah  !  ce  mensonge  m'a  flatte 
Autant  qu'a  fait  la  verite. 

La  beaute  qui  le  jour  se  couvre, 
Pendant  la  nuit  ne  cache  rien  : 
Les  yeux  fermes  je  vis  un  bien 
Qui  disparait  quand  on  les  ouvre. 
Dieu,  pour  soulager  mon  amour, 
Faites  que  je  dorme  toujours  ! 

Rien  ne  fut  plus  doux  que  Silvie, 
Et,  sans  que  je  fisse  d'efforts, 
J'eus  dans  I'image  de  1'amour, 
Le  plus  doux  plaisir  de  la  vie. 
Dieu,  pour  soulager  mon  amour, 
Faites  que  je  dorme  toujours  ! 

I  wish  you  the  same  delight,  the  sweetest  the  absent  can 
know.  If  my  song  win  your  approval,  and  I  find  any  one 
who  can  fit  music  to  the  words,  I  will  send  it  to  you.  I 
sing  it  with  the  greatest  pleasure. 

"  What  do  I  not  owe  to  you  ?  You  behaved  so  well 
about  Prince  Max.  You  see,  you  have  more  power  than 


264   THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

you  think.  As  long  as  your  father  lives  they  will  always 
treat  you  with  consideration :  the  Elector  has  need  of 
him,  and  will  not  readily  fall  out  with  him.  You  wish 
to  know,  tna  cherie,  how  I  pass  my  time.  Alas !  how  can 
I  spend  it  away  from  you  but  in  dreaming  day  and  night 
of  your  lovely  eyes  ?  I  pine,  I  sigh,  I  curse  the  day  of  my 
birth.  Sleeping,  I  dream  of  thee  ;  waking,  I  sing  : — 

Dieu,  pour  soulager  mon  amour, 
Faites  que  je  dorme  toujours  ! 

"  La  Platen  sends  me  pressing  invitations  every  day, 
but  I  only  went  once — I  told  you,  the  day  before  yester- 
day, at  nine  o'clock.  I  found  them  all  at  table.  VVithout 
joining  the  party,  I  walked  up  and  down  by  myself,  singing, 
and  as  soon  as  they  rose  I  returned  to  town  without  saying 
a  word.  If  this  does  not  please  you,  order  me  as  you  will  ; 
I  am  ready  to  obey  all  your  cqmmands.  If  you  think  we 
can  meet  while  you  are  at  the  Elector's,  let  me  know,  for  I  am 
dying  with  impatience  to  see  you ;  but,  for  the  sake  of  our  love, 
do  not  risk  anything, — we  should  pay  for  the  joy  too  dearly, 
our  bliss  would  be  turned  to  bane.  How  grateful  I  am  to  you 
for  telling  me  your  love  in  terms  so  tender !  Believe  me, 
mine  equals  yours.  I  cannot  find  words  strong  enough  to 
express  it.  My  eyes  bear  witness  of  my  heart's  passion  ; 
they  have  spoken  for  my  loving  heart  in  torrents  of  tears. 
When  a  man  loves  as  I  love,  he  does  not  change ;  and  you 
are  one  of  those  rare  women  whom  a  man  respects,  honours, 
and  adores  all  the  more  when  he  knows  them  well.  My 
love  is  rather  worship.  If  any  comparison  can  be  made 
between  mortals  and  the  gods,  you  could  well  be  taken  as 
an  example.  What  beauty,  what  goodness,  what  sweetness, 
what  charity,  what  brightness,  what  charm,  what  loveliness, 
what  clemency  !  You  are  mercy  incarnate.  You  are  like 
the  divine  beings  of  whom  the  Bible  speaks.  Do  not  be 
astonished  at  my  quoting  you  sweet  things  from  the  Bible, 
for  I  am  in  a  most  devout  mood. 

"  Tell  me  when  you  are  going  to  Brockhausen  and 
what  answer  your  mother  has  sent  you  :  I  must  know. 
I  should  like  to  know  also  hofy  the  Elector  behaves  to 
you  and  what  the  Electress  has  said.  I  rejoice  that  Prince 
Max's  charming  manners  do  not  charm  you." 


THE  TRYST  AT  BROCKHAUSEN  265 

The  Princess  to  Konigsmarck. 

"  [LuiSBURG,]  Sunday,  June  —. 

"  I  am  starting  in  two  hours'  time  with  the  Electress 
for  Brockhausen  ;  we  shall  be  back  to-morrow  evening. 
She  is  taking  no  one  but  Bruno  and  a  lady's  maid,  and  I 
am  taking  only  Marie.  1  received  your  letter,  and  it  gave 
me  great  pleasure.  I  should  have  nothing  to  complain 
about  if  you  had  not  accepted  La  Platen's  supper  party  on 
the  very  day  I  left :  it  is  like  a  dagger's  stab  to  me ;  but  -I 
have  written  you  a  long  letter  already  on  the  subject,  so 
I  will  say  no  more.  If  you  can  justify  yourself  and  give 
some  good  reason  for  having  gone,  you  will  relieve  me 
greatly.  ...  I  have  had  a  letter  from  my  husband ;  he 
permits  me  to  go  to  Brockhausen,  but  does  not  wish  me 
to  be  there  long.  I  told  him  that  the  Electress  had  given 
you  a  knot  of  ribbon  for  your  standard,  and  other  ladies 
had  done  the  same.  Here  are  his  very  words  in  answer: 
*  You  must  have  a  great  lack  of  news  to  write  to  me  about 
la  galanterie  de  madame  ma  mere ;  I  doubt  not  that  you 
followed  her  example '.  There  is  something  in  his  answer 
that  grates  on  me. 

"  Your  song  is  very  pretty.  Send  me  the  music. 
Alas !  I  have  not  had  a  pleasant  dream  yet :  how  can  I 
when  I  sleep  so  little?  Sitardie  told  me  again  yesterday 
that  he  is  composing  some  verses  on  your  absence  in 
which  he  depicts  me  as  wasting  with  sorrow.  I  don't 
quite  like  the  joke,  yet  I  dare  not  take  it  seriously.  I  did 
not  leave  my  room  until  very  late.  The  Elector  has  been 
asking  me  why  I  will  not  play.  I  excused  myself  on  the 
ground  that  Ilten  could  not  be  seated  so  long  ;  he  was 
so  much  interested  with  Sitardie  that  he  was  always  want- 
ing to  run  about  after  him.  I  fear  he  did  not  believe  me ; 
but  I  look  on  it  as  a  positive  torture  to  be  so  long  with 
people.  I  went  for  a  drive  with  the  Electress.  She  did 
not  go  to  the  supper-table,  so  I  supped  alone  in  my  room 
and  went  for  a  walk  after  with  La  Confidente  ;  then  I  went 
to  bed.  I  have  no  joy  but  in  solitude.  It  would  be  a 
great  joy  to  me  to  see  you  once  more ;  not  a  moment 
goes  by  that  I  do  not  wish  it.  La  Confidente  is  in  the 
small  room  next  me,  and  you  could  stay  without  being 
seen  ;  there  would  be  nothing  to  fear.  You  could  even 


266   THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

stop  a  whole  day  without  any  one  guessing  it ;  but  as  it 
is  almost  impossible  for  you  not  to  be  met  coming  or  going 
by  some  one  who  would  recognise  you,  I  will  say  nothing 
about  it,  for  though  I  long  passionately  to  see  you,  I  would 
rather  deprive  myself  of  the  joy  than  expose  you  to  danger, 
.  .  .  My  mother  has  not  yet  answered  my  letter.  When 
I  know  her  plans  I  will  let  you  know ;  but  in  any  case  I 
shall  come  back  here  with  the  Electress  for  a  few  days. 
I  was  nearly  forgetting  to  thank  you  for  the  sweet  things 
you  say,  and  when  I  am  quite  pleased  with  you  I  will  send 
some  to  you  ;  but  I  shall  not  look  for  them  in  the  Bible 
(as  you  do),  but  in  my  heart.  You  ask  how  the  Elector 
behaves  to  me.  He  is  the  same  as  usual,  I  believe;  but 
to  tell  you  the  truth  I  haven't  troubled  to  find  out.  The 
Electress  is  very  friendly." 

Kbnigsmarck  to  the  Princess. 

"  [HANOVER,]  June  —  • 

21 

"  Your  letter  of  the  Qth  would  have  given  me  great 
comfort  had  not  your  most  unjust  reproaches  wrung  my 
heart.  I  only  went  to  the  supper  to  prevent  people  talking, 
but  you  think  it  a  crime.  How  unfortunate  I  am  to  have 
done  a  thing  which  displeases  you,  through  motives  of 
policy !  You  know  I  am  compelled  to  keep  a  watch  over 
myself  before  others,  and  to  go  about  as  usual,  therefore 
you  are  wrong  in  rinding  fault.  ...  I  love  to  see  you  a 
little  jealous,  but  am  thoroughly  distressed  when  you  think 
I  have  consoled  myself  in  your  absence  with  such  as  La. 
Platen.  Assuredly  you  are  going  out  of  your  way  to 
wound  me.  Why  take  such  a  contrary  view  of  my  con- 
duct? What  I  did  was  only  for  love  of  you,  but  you  will 
not  take  policy  as  an  excuse.  Maybe  I  have  done  foolishly  ; 
but  think  what  you  did  a  year  ago  in  going  to  Monsieur 
Colt's  ball — a  great  fete  as  it  was.  You  danced  much  and 
merrily,  and  in  truth  I  was  hurt,  but  policy  excused  it,  and 
after  reading  this  I  hope  you  will  not  think  me  so  guilty,  for 
what  comparison  is  there  between  my  walking  near  the 
river  while  others  dance,  and  your  dancing  with  many  men  > 
What  I  say  is  true,  107  *  will  bear  witness.  I  swear  that  I 

1  The  key  to  this  cypher  is  lost. 


THE  TRYST  AT  BROCKHAUSEN  267 

walked  with  him  while  they  were  dancing,  and  did  not  go 
near  the  lively  company  ;  but,  on  the  contrary,  without  talk- 
ing to  anybody,  I  walked  on  the  ramparts  behind  the  cavalry 
barracks.  After  refusing  La  Platen's  invitation  three  times, 
I  could  not  very  well  excuse  myself  for  that  night,  for 
La  Rose  had  taken  me  apart,  saying,  '  Why  are  you  so- 
melancholy  ?  Are  you  ill  ? '  I  went,  therefore,  and  paid 
my  respects  to  La  Platen.  They  were  at  the  supper  table. 
After  supper  they  went  out  walking,  but  I  sat  down  on  a 
heap  of  fresh  mown  grass  without  saying  a  word  to  any  one. 
I  thought  only,  of  your  charms  and  the  joy  of  being  loved 
by  you,  and  then  I  took  my  way  home  without  seeing  La 
Platen  any  more.  This  I  vow  on  my  damnation  ;  and  I 
swear  to  you  also  that  I  will  never  put  foot  in  her  house 
again  except  to  take  leave,  be  the  consequences  what  they 
may  ;  so  you  can  be  at  rest  about  that.  I  will  never  see 
her  again,  though  it  ruin  me.  All  your  entreaties  will  avail 
nothing. 

"  Now  let  us  look  into  your  conduct  a  little — you,  so 
tender  and  true — and  see  if  we  can  find  a  flaw  in  you. 
Prince  Max  went  to  your  apartments,  which  could  not  be 
helped,  and  Balati  escorted  you  downstairs.  I  heard  this 
last  piece  of  news  through  my  enemies.  You  know  well 
I  am  jealous  of  him.  What,  too,  of  the  long  conversations 
with  Sitardie,  which  took  place  '  only  because  he  spoke  of 
me '  ?  However,  I  am  satisfied,  if  you  would  be  the  same. 
But  you  are  so  suspicious — and  why?  Because  I  went  to 
a  supper  without  eating,  and  to  a  dance  without  dancing. 
That  is  all  my  guilt.  Do  you  think  I  would  forsake  my 
divinity  for  a  supper?  Really,  if  you  have  such  a  bad 
opinion  of  me,  you  had  better  leave  me.  But  I  tell  you^ 
without  losing  my  temper,  I  love  you  passionately  and 
without  guile,  and  no  interest,  no  beauty,  no  supper,  and 
no  dance  will  ever  make  me  do  anything  which  would  give 
you  just  cause  to  suspect  me.  I  entreat  you,  tell  me  frankly 
if  you  are  cured  of  your  suspicions," 

The  Princess  to  Konigsmarck. 

"  [LuisBURG,  undated.] 

"  I  returned  with  the  Electress  very  late  last  night  from 
Brockhausen,  and  had  the  joy  of  finding  your  letter,  which 


I  read  over  at  least  ten  times.  I  should  have  answered  it 
before  going  to  bed  if  it  had  been  possible.  But  first  let 
me  tell  you  what  happened  at  Brockhausen.  We  arrived 
there  Sunday  at  nine  o'clock  in  the  evening ;  we  supped, 
and  after  the  company  had  retired  I  sat  up  with  my  parents 
until  nearly  two  o'clock.  They  entered  into  my  grievances 
very  fully  ;  they  are  not  pleased  with  the  way  the  court  of 
Hanover  is  acting,  and  they  think  exactly  as  I  would  have 
them  do.  My  husband,  it  appears,  wrote  a  very  civil  letter 
to  my  father,  leaving  him  absolutely  free  to  keep  me  as 
long  as  he  pleases.  You  know  he  wrote  to*  me  quite  the 
-contrary,  and  I  told  them  so.  They  want  me  to  ask  him 
how  long  he  will  let  me  stay  away.  Let  me  know  if  you 
approve  of  this.  I  will  await  your  answer  until  Monday. 
I  spent  half  the  next  day  in  bed,  the  other  half  with  the 
Electress  and  my  parents. 

"  They  say  the  Danes  are  certainly  marching.  I  know 
not  whether  to  rejoice  or  be  sad,  in  any  case  I  fear  I  shall 
not  have  the  joy  of  seeing  you,  for  they  seem  determined 
to  keep  me  here  [Luisburg]  as  long  as  they  can.  Max 
is  staying  here.  I  have  not  said  a  single  word  to  him  :  in 
fact,  I  should  forget  how  to  speak  if  it  were  not  for  the 
Electress  and  La  Confidente  ;  they  are  the  only  two  with 
whom  I  have  any  conversation.  We  left  Brockhausen  at 
seven  o'clock,  and  arrived  here  at  eleven,  and  I  had  supper 
in  my  room.  I  took  a  bath  this  morning  as  an  excuse  for 
not  going  out.  This  is  an  exact  account  of  everything 
I  did  yesterday  and  to-day. 

"  I  must  now  answer  your  letter.  I  am  sorry  if  mine 
grieved  you,  but  my  heart  was  so  full  that  if  I  had  told  you 
all  my  anger  you  would  not  have  got  off  as  lightly  as  you 
did.  I  am  satisfied  .with  your  excuses,  and  glad  of  your 
assurance  that  everything  took  place  in  public.  Yet,  even 
so,  I  would  have  given  my  heart's  blood  for  you  not  to 
have  gone.  Without  offence,  how  can  you  be  such  a  fool 
as  to  draw  a  comparison  between  my  going  to  Monsieur 
•Colt's  ball,  whither  I  went  a  fortnight  after  you  left,1  and 
because  the  Elector  and  Electress  insisted  upon  it,  and  your 
going  to  La  Platen's  supper  party  two  hours  after  I  had 
gone,  and  when  you  had  bidden  me  so  tender  a  farewell  ? 

1  For  the  campaign  in  Flanders,  June,  1692. 


THE  TRYST  AT  BROCKHAUSEN  269 

I  never  even  dreamt  that  you  were  disporting  yourself  in 
that  way.  But  we  will  talk  no  more  about  it,  for  I  love 
you,  and  I  cannot  be  angry  for  long.  Even  before  you 
wrote  I  had  forgiven  you.  .  I  am  a  fool  to  confess  it ;  but 
do  not  take  advantage  of  my  weakness.  Don't  give  me 
ground  for  thinking  you  are  acting  a  part  again ;  but,  on 
the  other  hand,  don't  be  so  silly  as  to  keep  away  from  La 
Platen  altogether.  You  know  my  views  on  the  subject,. 
and  it  is  most  important  to  keep  her  in  good  humour ; 
therefore,  for  the  sake  of  our  love,  go  there  as  before.  It 
was  not  your  visiting  her  that  I  found  so  bad,  but  the  time 
and  the  way  you  did  it — on  the  very  day  I  left.  It  nearly 
drove  me  out  of  my  mind. 

"  You  seem  to  mock  at  the  account  I  have  sent  you  of 
my  doings.  Mock  as  much  as  you  please,  but  it  is  true. 
You  tell  me  I  talked  a  good  deal  with  Sitardie.  He  told 
me  he  was  composing  some  verses  on  your  absence ;  but 
you  can  disabuse  your  mind  of  the  idea  that  any  one  is 
flirting  with  me.  I  shall  start  at  the  end  of  the  week  for 
Brockhausen. ' 


"  [LUISBURG,]  Wednesday,  June  — . 

24 

"  The  Electress  talks  about  you  every  time  I  walk  out 
with  her ;  and,  as  I  have  told  you,  I  am  alone  with  her 
a  good  deal.  I  know  not  whether  she  does  it  through 
friendship  for  you  or  because  she  thinks  it  pleases  me ; 
in  either  case,  it  is  the  same.  Je  ne  peux  meme  entendre 
nommer  votre  nom  sans  un  transport  dont  je  ne  suis  pas 
la  maitresse.  She  praises  you  so  highly  that  were  she 
younger  I  should  be  jealous.  I  really  think  she  is  fond  of 
you  ;  she  can  hardly  show  it  more,  and  it  makes  me  quite 
uncomfortable !  She  has  just  sent  me  word  to  come  out 
for  a  walk  with  her,  and  so  robs  me  of  the  joy  of  writing 
to  you — my  only  one  when  we  are  not  together.  Some 
day  perhaps  I  shall  be  able  to  see  you  as  I  will,  and  never 
to  leave  you  more.  I  believe  I  shall  go  mad,  for  the  life 
I  lead  is  intolerable.  Let  us  hope  for  a  happy  change  ; 
let  us  do  everything  to  be  together.  I  shall  never  get 
used  to  separation  from  you ;  I  find  it  harder  every  day, 
for  I  love  you  more  ardently  than  ever." 


270   THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

"  [LuiSBURG,]  Twelve  midnight  [Saturday], 

"  I  could  not  finish  this  afternoon.  The  Electress  pre- 
vented me  from  bathing  to-day.  She  tells  me  I  have  so 
very  few  days  to  remain  here  thart  she  wishes  me  to  be  with 
her.  However,  I  shall  take  a  bath  to-morrow.  ...  I  have 
never  felt  the  force  of  my  love  for  you  more  than  now — 
except  perhaps  in  our  most  rapturous  moments.  I  tell  you 
again,  my  life  and  my  peace  are  in  your  hands.  Mon  Dieu  ! 
how  dear  you  are  to  me  !  how  dearly  I  love  you  !  I  shall 
never  be  happy  until  we  are  together  all  our  life  long. 
When  will  that  bliss  come?  How  I  long  and  yearn  for  it! 
Such  joy  as  that  cannot  be  bought  too  dearly.  .  .  .  They 
tell  me  La  Platen  is  not  coming  here  after  all ;  I  am  not 
surprised  to  hear  it.  I  should  have  been  astonished  if  she 
had  come  as  long  as  you  remain  in  Hanover.  She  is  quite 
free  now,  and,  should  you  take  advantage,  the  opportunity 
is  excellent.  I  am  absent,  and  les  absents  ont  toujours  tort. 
But  no!  you  would  be  incapable  of  anything  of  the  kind. 
You  are  loving,  tender,  and  true  ;  it  is  a  crime  to  suspect 
you." 

Konigsmarck  to  the  Princess. 

"  [HANOVER,]  June  — . 

>J  J  2j 

"  I  am  waiting  to  show  you  how  absence  has  wasted  me. 
I  must  know  the  hour,  the  day,  and  where  I  am  to  come. 
I  will  see  to  the  rest.  But  tell  me,  how  will  you  be  able 
to  keep  me  hidden  without  endangering  yourself?  The 
risk  I  run  is  not  very  great,  and  to  see  the  one  who  loves 
me  I  would  willingly  be  torn  in  pieces. 

"  Let  me  kiss  the  beautiful  lips  that  kissed  me  so 
sweetly,  Ah !  when  we  meet  we  will  show  the  sweet 
violence  of  our  passion  by  the  tenderest  tokens.  I  would 
give  my  blood  this  very  moment  for  one  sip  of  your  honey 
lips.  I  know  battles  are  dangerous  for  us  men,  particularly 
against  the  Danes,  for  we  always  lose  ;  but  if  you  really 
wish  to  dispute  the  fact  that  I  have  more  passion,  more  con- 
stancy, more  devotion  than  you,  I  accept  your  challenge. 
Know  this :  for  two  months  I  have  been  preparing  myself 
to  meet  the  attack,  and  as  it  is  long  since  I  have  taken  up 
arms,  I  might  be  overcome.  Yet  I  will  fight  a  duel  with 


THE  TRYST  AT  BROCKHAUSEN  271 

you  with  the  greatest  possible  joy.  I  only  wish  to  know 
the  rendezvous,  the  arms,  and  the  seconds.  My  weapons 
will  be  my  eyes  and  my  mouth.  .  .  .  Choose  a  day  and 
hour  when  duty  will  not  hinder  me  from  coming,  and  you 
will  see  how  I  shall  fly  to  you.  Come  out  when  it  suits 
you.  I  am  glad  you  give  me  the  chance. 

"  I  am  delighted  to  hear  that  La  Confidente  has  put 
aside  her  chilly  airs,  and  am  curious  to  know  with  whom 
she  has  been  flirting.  She  will  say,  '  But,  alas  !  it  is  a 
dream.  .  Why  is  it  not  for  good?'  I  hope  it  is  Bal  aux 
Fores,  though,  i'  faith,  she  deserves  some  one  more  attrac- 
tive, more  gallant  and  younger,  for  I  verily  believe  she 
would  show  much  passion  for  her  lover,  who  would  soon 
make  her  lose  her  coldness,  for  she  is  passing  fair  and  has 
a  good  figure." 

"[H \NOVER,]  June^. 

25 

"  It  is  very  bad  the  Prince  should  write  in  two  ways 
— bad  for  himself,  but  all  the  better  for  you  and  me ;  for 
they  will  clearly  see  what  a  rage  he  is  in.  You  must 
have  irritated  him  extremely.  I  have  heard  from  Marshal 
Podevils.  According  to  appearances  war  will  be  declared 
very  soon,  and  as  a  great  favour  (which  enrages  me)  they 
will  let  me  take  part  in  the  campaign.  I  must  take  it  'as 
a  great  favour,'  that  some  one  evidently  wishes  to  get  rid 
of  me !  My  regiment  will  march  to  the  Elbe,  and  I  shall 
be  able  to  do  the  campaign,  and  to  smooth  matters  down  a 
little.  The  Marshal  tells  me  I  may  return  when  they  give 
me  an  order  to  do  so.  I  am  not  to  s'tart  this  week,  for  he 
wishes  first  to  learn  the  issue  of  a  conference  which  is  being 
held  where  you  are  [at  Luisburgl  .* 

"  It  is  not  a  little  matter  that  your  father  is  beginning  to 
listen  ;  and,  with  your  mother's  help,  you  may  perhaps  suc- 
ceed in  your  plan,  provided  you  do  not  relax  your  efforts. 
Remember,  it  is  the  only  way  for  us  to  become  happy.  .  .  . 
I  should  not  advise  you  to  write  to  the  Prince  to  ask  him 
the  time  you  ought  to  stay,  for  in  doing  so  you  subject  your- 
self, and  it  is  always  better  to  be  free.  Wait  first  to  learn 
my  fate,  and  when  we  know  for  certain  what  will  be  done 

1  But  meantime  the  Princess  had  gone  again  to  her  parents  at  Brock- 
Jiauseru 


272    THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

with  me,  you  can  go  to  Brockhausen.  If  your  parents  again- 
press  you  to  write,  say  you  know  it  will  displease  the  Prince 
$.nd  you  positively  refuse  to  displease  him  while  you  have 
so  little  support  to  expect  from  your  father.  But  should 
they  promise  anything  substantial,  write  anything  and 
everything  they  wish,  but  beware  of  being  tricked.  That 
is  my  little  piece  of  advice.  And  now  for  yours.  Don't 
think  of  inducing  me  to  return  to  La  Platen.  All  your 
commands  and  prayers  will  be  in  vain.  Had  I  followed 
my  own  inclination,  I  should  have  kept  to  that  resolution 
long  ago ;  but  you  made  me  feign  and  act  in  a  cowardly 
manner,  which,  but  for  you,  I  should  never  have  done.  But 
you  will  not  catch  me  that  way  any  more.  Whatever  may 
happen,  I  will  avoid  Monplaisir  like  hell.  I  have  seen  no- 
lady  in  this  house  since  you  went  away.  I  bathe  in  the 
river  every  evening  at  seven  o'clock,  and  to  kill  time  I 
shoot  swallows  from  my  window.  I  hope  these  innocent 
diversions  will  not  give  you  further  ground  for  unjust  sus- 
picions." 


The  Princess  to  Konigsmarck. 


16 


"[BROCKHAUSEN,]  Friday,  June  -,. 

"  After  pining  for  three  days  and  suffering  tortures  of 
suspense,  I  have  the  joy  of  receiving  two  letters  from  you. 
The  desire  of  my  heart  is  to  see  you  again.  I  have  already 
told  you  it  is  quite  easy  as  far  as  I  am  concerned.  La 
Confidente  sleeps  in  a  small  room  near  me.  You  can  come 
in  by  a  back  door  and  stay  twenty-four  hours  if  you  wish 
without  the  least  risk  to  me.  Every  evening  I  walk  alone 
with  La  Confidente  under  the  trees,  quite  near  the  house. 
I  will  look  out  for  you  from  ten  o'clock  until  two  o'clock. 
You  know  the  usual  signal.  You  must  also  know  the 
back  door.  The  door  of  the  palisade  is  always  open.  Do 
not  forget  to  give  the  [first]  signal  ;  it  is  you  who  must 
give  it,  and  I  will  wait  for  you  under  the  trees.  I  look  for- 
ward with  rapture  to  seeing  you  ;  I  have  longed  for  it  every 
moment  since  we  parted,  and  on  that  account  have  put 
off  going  away  [from  here].  My  mother  and  father  are 
in  a  great  hurry  to  return  [to  Celle]  as  soon  as  possible. 
We  can  talk  over  our  business  when  we  meet ;  it  would 
take  too  long  to  write  about  it.  I  think  only  of  the  j 


THE  TRYST  AT  BROCKHAUSEN  273 

of  seeing  you.  If  joy  kill.it  will  kill  me.  You  will  find 
me  as  tender  as  ever — even  more  so.  I  shall  give  you  so 
many  kisses,  and  with  such  fondness,  that  you  will  be  sorry 
you  ever  doubted  me.  ...  I  am  sorry  that  you  no  longer 
go  to  Countess  Platen's,  it  is  rather  important  you  should 
go.  As  for  the  other  minx,  she  does  not  trouble  me.  I 
entreat  you  go  there  as  usual,  and  so  relieve  my  fears. 
I  am  quite  easy  now,  for  I  believe  you  will  always  be 
mine.  Come  soon — soon;  never  mind  the  day;  the 
sooner  the  better.": 

Konigsmarck  to  the  Princess. 

"  [BROCKHAUSEN  (?),]  June  l—. 

"  I  make  haste  to  let  you  know  I  am  here,  and  I  flatter 
myself  you  will  be  as  glad  as  I  am.  Le  Feltam  gave  me 
my  leave.  I  have  changed  my  mood.  At  present  let  us 
think  only  of  embracing  each  other.  What  joy  for  me,  a 
hopeless  lover !  I  had  not  shaved  since  our  sad  adieu,  but 
to-day  I  am  clean-shaven  and  merry-looking.  Let  every 
one  sing  '  The  chevalier  is  conqueror,'  and  for  my  sake,  for 
yours,  and  all  that  is  dear  to  us,  let  me  throw  myself  at  your 
feet.  See  how  joyful  I  am  !  Until  now  you  have  known 
me  sorrowful,  but  I  am  beginning  to  breathe  again  and 
forget  my  troubles.  Don't  think,  though  La  Platen  may 
be  '  free,'  she  could  in  any  way  alter  my  devotion  to  you  ; 
death  itself  would  not  efface  it,  still  less  that  old  cocotte. 
I  don't  know  what  I  have  done  to  deserve  the  Electress's 
favour,  but  if  it  does  us  any  good  I  am  very  glad  to  have  it." 


"...  I  will  not  fail  unless  the  command  to  march 
prevents  me.  I  am  dying  with  joy  and  longing.  To- 
morrow night  at  ten  o'clock  I  will  be  at  the  rendezvous. 
Le  signal  ordinaire  nous  fera  connaitre.  Je  sifflerai  du  loin 
' Les  Folies  d'Espagne\  If  I  understand  the  spot  aright,  it 
is  near  the  house,  between  where  the  Duke's  stables  used 
to  be  and  the  house.  I  will  be  there  at  ten  o'clock." 

"  [HANOVER,]  June  —  . 

"  This  is  to  let  you  know  my  expedition  ended  without 
accident,  except  that  in  coming  out  of  the  palisade  I  saw 

18 


274   THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

two  men  walking  about  six  paces  from  me.  I  did  not  dare 
turn  my  head,  and  so  was  quite  unable  to  see  their  faces. 
One  of  your  women  lighted  a  candle  outside  the  dressing- 
room  as  I  went  through,  but  I  do  not  know  which  one  it 
was,  for  I  did  not  dare  turn  my  head.  These  are  all  the 
incidents,  dear  heart,  except  that  I  found  the  way  much 
longer  returning  than  coming.  The  difference  is  easily 
understood !  I  found  when  I  got  back  a  despatch  to  the 
effect  that  I  must  march  with  my  regiment  at  the  end  of 
the  month,  and  a  letter  from  my  secretary  which  makes 
me  tremble.  I  will  send  you  the  original  at  the  first  oppor- 
tunity. A  million  thanks  for  your  sweet  tenderness  and 
dear  proofs  of  love !  Were  it  not  for  the  comfort  and 
consolation  they  give  me,  I  should  die  of  trouble,  for  no 
man  before  ever  saw  himself  ruined  all  at  once.  But  I 
have  found  a  treasure  worth  all  that  Northern  land,  and 
I  would  not  change  places  with  that  barbarous  and  unjust 
King  [of  Sweden]." 

«  [HANOVER,]  ^-3. 
J  /«^3 

"  I  shuddered  on  reading  your  letter.1  To  what  danger 
I  have  exposed  you  !  Dieu  !  how  near  we  have  been  to 
our  ruin  !  What  a  fatal  accident  to  occur  just  at  the  wrong 
time !  It  is  so  like  a  novel  that  were  you  to  tell  it,  many 
people  would  not  believe  you.  I  had  no  idea  so  many 
people  were  about,  and  two  of  them  followed  me.  I  thought 
it  was  without  design,  but  I  see  now  that  I  owe  it  to  my 
legs  that  they  did  not  catch  me.  But  I  lost  myself,  and 
did  not  get  back  to  my  horse  until  four  o'clock.  Just  think 
of  the  time  I  took  in  running  from  left  to  right  and  right 
to  left !  The  favour  which  Providence  has  showed  us  is 
indeed  great ;  I  shall  remember  it  for  a  long  time.  Just 
think  how  easy  it  is  to  be  lost.  All  human  prudence  can- 
not avoid  an  accident,  but  we  have  come  through  safely. 
I  vow  that  no  one  recognised  me. 

"  You  were  sweet  to  say  you  were  pleased  with  me,  and 
I  am  so  charmed  with  your  assurances  that  I  cannot  thank 
you  enough.  I  have  slept  well  the  last  few  nights ;  and  I 
needed  it,  for  the  run  on  foot  was  very  tiring.  Your  divine 

1  This  letter  of  the  Princess  is  missing ;  it  must  have  referred  to  some 
accident  after  their  meeting. 


THE  TRYST  AT  BROCKHAUSEN  275 

kisses  intoxicated  me  so  much  that  I  drank  a  bumper  to 
steady  myself.  They  say  the  Elector  will  certainly  be  here 
on  Monday.  See  how  unfortunate  we  are.  What  ill-luck 
this  is  !  I  fret  all  the  more  because  you  are  not  coming 
with  him.  I  am  going  away  this  day  week.  They  say 
your  father  is  going  to  Celle  ;  if  so,  I  hope  greatly  I  may 
see  you  again.  Think  if  it  can  be  managed.  Ma  petite 
brunette,  how  I  will  kiss  thee  when  I  hold  thee  again ! 
Meanwhile  I  dream  of  thee. 

Dieu,  pour  soulager  mon  amour, 
Faites  que  je  dorme  toujours  ! " 

The  Princess  to  K'onigsmarck. 

"[BROCKHAUSEN,]   ^-^ '. 

"  I  am  very  anxious.  I  have  not  heard  from  you  yet.1 
I  have  had  a  letter  from  my  husband  in  answer  to  the 
one  I  wrote  from  Luisburg  complaining  that  they  tried  to 
lodge  Max  next  me.  I  also  mentioned  that  you  were 
going  to  the  Ukraine.  He  answers  as  follows  :  '  You  have 
acted  like  a  veritable  Lucretia  towards  Max.  I  see  that 
my  honour  is  safe  in  your  hands.  I  am  surprised  to  hear 
Konigsmarck  is  going  to  take  part  in  the  campaign  to  the 
Ukraine  ;  it  will  do  him  no  good.  I  fear  he  has  not  paid 
his  debts  yet,  and  from  all  they  say  he  will  get  into  trouble 
in  consequence.'  I  am  in  sore  distress  about  this.  Tell  me 
what  you  wish  me  to  answer  him,  for  I  am  sure  my  husband 
takes  a  malignant  delight  in  writing  thus,  he  is  full  of  envy 
and  hatred  against  any  one  like  you,  who  is  charming  and 
deserving,  and  merits  distinction.  I  am  engrossed  with  my 
•own  plans.  My  mother  is  beginning  a  business  which  will 
be  very  good  for  me  if  she  succeeds.  She  wants  to  make 
over  her  Celle  estates  as  a  present,  with  money,  to  me.  She 
spoke  about  the  business  to  Bernstorff,  who  promised  great 
friendship,  and  offered  his  services  on  my  behalf.  If  they 
would  only  employ  him  I  am  sure  he  would  see  I  had  my 
rights.  If  he  would  take  up  my  interests  my  father  would 
do  everything  that  could  be  wished.  We  must  try  every 
means  in  our  power.  The  matter  is  too  near  my  heart  for 

1  The  letters  must  have  crossed. 

18* 


276   THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

me  to  neglect  it,  for  upon  the  issue  hangs  all  my  future 
happiness." 


"  We  start  to-morrow  after  dinner  for  Celle.  I  am  very 
glad,  for  it  brings  us  nearer  to  one  another,  and  I  shall  hope 
to  have  news  of  you  oftener.  I  have  not  been  able  to  write 
from  here  as  much  as  I  should  have  liked.  I  am  broken 
with  many  anxieties,  and  tremble  lest  your  embarrassments 
may  take  you  to  Flanders.  Your  Swedish  business  worries 
me  also,  and  to  crown  my  misery  I  cannot  see  you,  and 
shall  have  to  spend  a  whole  month  without  you  —  you,  who 
are  the  only  joy  of  my  life.  Grand  Dieu  !  how  weary  I  am 
of  the  existence  I  lead  !  how  sad  and  hopeless  it  all  is  ! 
The  end  of  my  misery  seems  still  very  far  off.  But  I  am 
wrong  to  complain,  since  you  love  me  :  that  thought  should 
console  me  for  everything,  for  as  long  as  you  do  not  change 
I  shall  be  happy.  ...  1  hear  my  mother.  Adieu." 


CHAPTER  XX. 

LOVE'S  BITTERNESS. 

Ah  !  what  a  little  time  to  love  is  lent ; 
Yet  half  that  time  is  in  unkindness  spent ! 

DRYDEN. 

THE  Princess  spent  the  month  of  July  at  Celle  and  Wien- 
hausen  with  her  parents.  She  did  not  once  meet  her  lover, 
who  remained  at  Hanover  daily  expecting  orders  to  start 
on  the  campaign  against  the  Danes.  For,  contrary  to  ex- 
pectation, and  despite  the  mediation  of  an  Imperial  envoy, 
who  journeyed  to  Hanover  on  purpose  to  arrange  matters, 
the  Duke  of  Celle  and  the  Elector  of  Hanover  came  to  an 
open  rupture  with  Denmark  and  Sweden  over  the  fortifica- 
tions of  Ratzeburg,  and  Denmark  sent  troops  to  demolish 
them.  This,  of  course,  was  tantamount  to  a  declaration  of 
war.  It  was  an  anxious  time  for  the  little  court  of  Celle, 
for  the  Danes  were  far  superior  in  numbers,  and  if  successful 
at  Ratzeburg  they  might  follow  up  their  advantage  by 
entering  the  duchy  and  even  seizing  Celle  itself. 

It  was  especially  unfortunate  for  the  Princess,  who, 
absorbed  in  her  mad  passion  and  desperately  unhappy, 
had  come  to  the  conclusion  that  she  could  no  longer  live 
at  the  court  of  Hanover,  or  indeed  anywhere  apart  from 
her  lover.  She  therefore  concentrated  her  energies  on  ob- 
taining a  grant  of  money  from  her  father,  a  sum  sufficient 
for  her  to  maintain  an  establishment  of  her  own.  The  plea 
for  independence  was  reasonable  enough,  for  she  had  been 
very  unfairly  treated  in  her  marriage  settlement ;  and  at 
any  other  time  the  Duke,  ignorant  of  the  real  reason  for 
which  she  wanted  the  money,  might  have  been  disposed  to 
listen,  but  now,  with  the  expense  of  raising  many  troops 
and  the  possibility  of  defeat  and  ruin,  he  was  quite  unable 
to  accede  to  her  wishes.  Without  money  things  must  e'en 
go  on  as  before,  for  separate  establishments  were  expensive, 

277 


278    THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

and  flight  was  even  more  so,  and  Konigsmarck,  wealthy 
though  he  was,  had  none  at  this  juncture.  He  was  crippled 
with  gambling  debts,  he  had  neglected  his  affairs,  and  the 
King  of  Sweden  threatened  to  confiscate  his  estates.  The 
lovers  were  in  despair  ;  everything  fought  against  them  ; 
all  around  was  war  and  rumour  of  war  ;  while,  to  add  to  it 
all,  Konigsmarck  was  now  to  be  sent  away  on  a  campaign 
against  the  Danes.  Yet,  as  usual,  their  letters  are  filled 
alternately  with  ardent  love  and  fierce  jealousy  ;  their  love 
was  not  of  a  nature  to  give  either  of  them  any  rest,  even  if 
things  had  gone  smoothly.  The  proximity  of  Prince  Max, 
despite  the  fact  that  he  was  the  Princess's  brother-in-law, 
was  sufficient  to  arouse  Konigsmarck's  suspicions  (a  curious 
comment  on  the  morals  of  the  time),  and  she,  in  her  turn, 
was  furiously  jealous  because  he  gave  a  farewell  party  to 
which  the  Countess  Platen  was  invited.  But  the  story  of 
all  this  is  told  in  the  letters,  which  begin  with  the  Princess's 
arrival  at  Celle  and  close  with  her  return  to  Hanover.  The 
Princess  sent  Konigsmarck  a  few  lines  to  tell  him  that  she 
had  reached  Celle  (and  a  little  poem  unfortunately  lost),  to 
which  he  replied. 

Konigsmarck  to  the  Princess. 

,,  TT  June  26 

"  HANOVER,  -T  ,   , . 

July  6 

"  After  many  days  I  received  a  letter  from  you.  It 
gave  me  as  much  joy  in  reading  it  as  a  starving  man  would 
have  in  devouring  a  delicate  morsel  when  he  had  not  tasted 
food  for  days.  It  satisfied  my  craving  a  little,  but  I  still 
hunger  until  I  kiss  you  again.  I  don't  understand  in  what 
your  father  is  hard,  unless  it  be  in  the  matter  of  your 
separate  establishment.  If  that  be  so,  I  am  surprised  you 
should  have  broached  the  subject  so  soon,  when  you  had 
only  been  home  one  night.  I  hope  you  will  succeed,  for 
your  mother  is  on  your  side,  and  if  your  love  be  true  you 
will  work  for  it.  ...  If  you  really  wrote  that  song  you 
ought  to  write  some  more,  for  it  is  very  well  done,  and 
most  kind  to  '  Tercis ' ;  he  thanks  you  very  much,  and 
when  certain  fancies  are  out  of  his  head,  he  will  try  to 
answer  it.  Though  your  mother  has  promised  you  two 
thousand  crowns,  I  fear  it  will  be  very  little  good,  but  it  is 
well  to  have  her  on  your  side — would  to  Heaven  your 


LOVE'S  BITTERNESS  279 

father  were  the  same !  I  hope  I  shall  not  offend  if  I 
implore  you,  in  case  your  mother  warns  you  against  me, 
not  to  let  her  make  the  least  impression  on  your  mind. 
The  officious  attentions  of  Prince  Max  and  of  those  of 
whom  you  do  not  write,  as  well  as  the  conversation  you 
had  with  him,  displease  me  very  much.  You  asked  me  if 
you  might  speak  to  him,  and  you  did  so  without  my  con- 
sent. Why  did  you  not  tell  me  ?  .  .  . 

"  I  am  a  little  reassured,  for  Prince  Max  has  just  arrived. 
Tell  me  all  about  the  foreigners  who  have  been  at  Celle. 
Marshal  Podevils  asked  me  yesterday  to  come  and  see  him 
to-day,  as  he  had  something  to  say.  I  went  about  eleven 
o'clock.  He  said  that  having  been  always  one  of  my 
friends,  he  wished  to  warn  me  some  one  had  spoken  to  him 
about  us,  saying  :  '  What  a  row  there  will  be  if  there  should 
really  be  an  intrigue  between  them  ! '  I  answered  :  '  Mon- 
sieur, since  the  day  you  warned  me  of  the  Elector's  sus- 
picions I  have  not  spoken  to  Madame  la  Princesse  tete-a- 
tete'  ;  and  I  promised  him  to  be  very  discreet.  He  said  he 
told  the  person  who  mentioned  the  matter  that  he  would 
answer  for  me,  and  it  was  better  not  to  speak  about  such 
things.  He  would  not  give  the  person's  name,  but  I  think 
it  is  a  friend  of  yours  and  mine,  I IO.1  The  Marshal  firmly 
believes  this  gossip  originates  with  La  Platen.  He  is  on 
your  side  and  pities  you  much,  and  it  is  kind  of  him  to 
have  warned  me.  He  declared  that  the  Elector  was  no 
longer  suspicious,  which  is  a  comfort. 

"  The  companies  of  infantry  are  marching,  but  my 
regiment  remains  near  Hanover  for  a  few  days.  Whether 
the  Danes  advance  or  not,  I  shall  still  have  to  go  with  the 
army.  I  must  start  without  seeing  you  unless  you  can 
arrange  it  otherwise.  It  depends  on  your  mercy  and 
tenderness  to  say  whether  I  shall  be  able  to  kiss  your  feet, 
and  if  my  kisses  are  dear  and  sweet  to  you,  you  will  say 
4  Yes '.  Do  not  risk  anything,  for  precautions  must  be 
taken.  We  are  treading  on  dangerous  ground  ;  but  when 
people  love  as  we  love  they  do  not  consider  trifles,  and  if 
one  holds  the  loved  one,  what  matters  the  cost?  Were  I 
to  see  the  scaffold  before  my  eyes  I  would  not  swerve." 


^IQ,    probably   some    courtier    at    Hanover,    but   the   key   is   missing. 
(?  Sitardie.) 


28o        THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

The  Princess  to  Konigsmarck. 

"[CELLE,]  Wednesday,  July  8. 

"  If  my  letters  give  you  pleasure,  yours  are  the  only  joy 
of  my  life.  But  I  have  had  one  to-day  which  both  rejoices 
and  grieves  me.  I  am  desolee  to  see  you  are  not  satisfied 
with  me.  If  I  did  not  mention  I  had  spoken  to  Max  it 
was  because  I  had  not  then  done  so.  I  had  no  conversation 
with  him  until  the  day  he  left,  and  this  is  word  for  word 
what  passed  between  us.  I  said  :  '  Max,  I  thank  you  for 
the  courtesy  you  showed  me  at  Luisburg '.  He  replied  : 
4  It  was  only  my  duty,  and  I  shall  always  be  glad  to  serve 
you  in  all  things'.  I  was  rinsing  my  mouth.  Bernstorff 
and  my  mother  were  at  the  other  side  of  the  room,  quite 
near.  I  vow  our  conversation  ended  there.  That  same 
evening  he  took  leave  of  my  father  and  my  mother  (who 
was  holding  my  hand).  She  kissed  him,  and  desired  me 
to  do  the  same.  I  withdrew  my  hand  abruptly,  and  went 
to  the  other  side  of  the  room,  whence  I  asked  him  in  a 
loud  voice  to  convey  my  respects  to  the  Electress.  Later 
on,  my  mother  begged  my  pardon,  and  I  asked  her  never 
to  suggest  such  a  thing  again,  as  it  annoyed  me  greatly. 

"  What  Marshal  Podevils  told  you  surprises  me.  I 
thought  they  no  longer  suspected  anything  between  us. 
I  am  not  accusing  1 10  ;  all  my  suspicions  fall  on  103. * 
Had  1 10  done  so,  he  would  have  been  the  falsest  of  men  ; 
for  he  swore  on  his  honour  to  warn  me  of  anything  that 
might  be  said  about  me,  and  assured  me  he  never  heard 
anything.  Try  to  find  out  from  Marshal  Podevils  who 
told  him  this  gossip,  for  it  is  of  consequence  if  the  Elector 
suspects  anything  afresh  ;  if  not,  I  count  it  of  no  importance. 
They  are  all  very  much  pleased  with  my  conduct  here  ;  the 
Electress  spoke  of  me  in  the  highest  terms.  I  little  expected 
you  to  tell  me  you  are  still  going  with  the  army — if  you 
can.  The  blow  stuns  me.  Why  did  you  let  me  think  you 
were  going  to  stay  when  you  all  along  meant  the  contrary  ? 
I  am  deeply  hurt  to  think  you  are  going  far  away  from  me, 
perhaps  for  long.  Were  you  to  stay,  in  three  weeks'  time 
I  should  be  able  to  see  you  again.  How  I  long  for  it ! 
How  dull  and  tedious  are  the  days !  You  are  all  my  joy. 
La  Confidente  and  I  are  always  thinking  how  we  can 

1 1  cannot  find  the  key  to  these  numbers  in  the  cypher. 


LOVE'S  BITTERNESS  281 

manage  things  for  you  to  come  here ;  but  the  difficulties 
make  me  feel  hopeless.  I  long  for  you  with  passionate 
longing. 

"  Grand  Dieu !  if  you  go  away  without  seeing  me 
I  shall  die.  .  .  ." 

Konigsmarck  to  the  Princess. 

,,  TT                 June  a8 
"  HANOVER,  % -. 

July  8 

"  I  advise  you  not  to  speak  of  me  so  frequently,  and  not 
answer  the  Prince  unless  you  wish  to  write  to  him ;  in  that 
case  you  might  say  that  you  asked  me  when  I  took  leave  of 
you  why  I  was  not  going  to  Flanders,  and  I  said  I  had  first 
to  raise  money  to  pay  my  debts  in  Flanders.  I  think  you 
can  easily  say  this  ;  it  would  do  neither  harm  nor  good,  so 
please  yourself,  and  do  whatever  may  be  most  a  propos. 
Pray  be  on  good  terms  with  Bernstorff ;  but  beware !  Do 
not  let  him  see  you  are  estranged  from  the  Prince,  and  don't 
let  him  guess  that  you  wish  the  money  to  retire  upon  some 
•day,  and  prevent  your  mother  from  making  a  fuss  or  saying 
anything  about  it.  Mind  you  take  my  advice.  You  must 
not  ignore  the  fact  that  everything  Bernstorff  knows  La 
Platen  knows  ;  and  business  of  this  consequence  is  liable  to 
be  known  by  them  simultaneously.  Do  not  fret  about  my 
losses  ;  they  are  not  very  great,  and  if  I  lose  villages  I  gain 
a  divinity,  who  is  worth  more  to  me  than  all  the  kingdoms 
put  together.  Your  vows  of  constancy  console  me  for  all 
my  troubles." 

The  Princess  to  Konigsmarck. 

,1  r/-<  T  T->  •  j       June  "\o 

"  rCELLE.1  Friday.  T  ,   J  . 

f    July  10 

"  I  witnessed  yesterday  a  scene  between  my  father  and 
mother  which  gave  me  much  food  for  thought.  One  could 
not  imagine  anything  more  unkind  and  bitter  than  the  things 
they  said  to  each  other.  Buccow x  was  the  cause  ;  my  father 
defended  him,  which  made  my  mother  desperately  angry. 
I  trembled  to  see  two  people  whom  love  alone  united  so 
much  exasperated  at  so  little  ;  indeed,  they  threatened  to 
leave  one  another.  Two  hours  after  they  made  it  up  ;  but 

1  Buccow  (Lc  Bdtard),  the  illegitimate  son  of  the  Duke  of  Celle. 


282    THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

my  mother  was  stung  to  the  quick  by  my  father's  words,, 
and  with  reason.  You  may  imagine  she  has  very  little 
influence  if  she  cannot  succeed  in  a  business  she  has  so- 
much  at  heart.  It  doesn't  make  me  hopeful  about  my 
affair,  for  all  my  trust  was  in  her,  and  I  see  it  is  enough  for 
her  to  wish  a  thing  for  it  not  to  be  done.  My  father  is  hard 
beyond  imagination.  I  am  far  from  expecting  great  things 
of  him,  and  I  see  from  his  manner  towards  my  mother  that 
one  cannot  believe  in  his  kindness  ;  so  I  am  in  a  very  bad 
humour  to-day.  .  .  ." 

Konigsmarck  to  the  Princess. 

"  [HANOVER,]  Friday,    Hn.e  3°,  Twelve  o'clock  midday. 

"  The  life  I  have  been  leading  since  the  court  returned 
must,  I  fear,  give  you  cause  for  much  jealousy,  for  I  am 
playing  every  night  with  ladies,  and,  uithout  vanity,  they  are 
neither  ugly  nor  of  mean  rank.  I  crave  your  pardon,  but 
I  cannot  live  without  a  little  pleasure,  and  one  of  them  is 
so  much  like  you  that  I  cannot  help  being  in  her  society. 
You  will  be  curious  to  know  her  name,  but  I  will  not  tell, 
for  fear  you  may  forbid  me  to  pay  her  my  court.  I  cannot 
forget  those  delectable  moments  at  Brockhausen.  What 
pleasure !  what  transports  !  what  ardour  !  what  rapture  we 
tasted  together  !  and  with  what  grief  we  parted  !  Oh  that 
I  could  live  those  moments  over  again  !  Would  that  I  had 
died  then,  drinking  deep  of  your  sweetness,  your  exquisite 
tenderness !  What  transports  of  passion  were  ours !  .  .  . 
I  will  always  be  your  true  lover,  absent  or  present,  wherever 
you  may  be,  and  whatever  may  befall.  La  Platen  has  ap- 
peared dressed  in  a  ridiculous  yellow  cloak." 

"  [HANOVER  (?),]  Sunday. 

"  You  ask  me  to  give  up  the  campaign.  I  will  obey  you 
blindly  without  reflecting,  but  on  one  condition,  if  to  save 
my  honour  I  must  needs  go  once  more  you  will  give  me 
leave.  They  tell  me  that  General  Pless,  in  Denmark,  is 
disgraced  ;  and  if  that  be  so,  that  was  the  post  they  wanted 
to  give  me.  The  terms  were  very  advantageous,  but  it  does 
not  matter  now.  The  Elector  has  gone  to  Brockhausen, 
that  charming  place  where  you  were.  Will  that  sweet  hour 


LOVE'S  BITTERNESS  283 

ever  come  again  ?  One  of  my  manoeuvres  to  deceive  my 
servants  is  to  spend  a  few  nights  on  the  soft  grass,  unless  it 
rains." 

The  Princess  to  Kdnigsmarck. 

"  [CELLE,]  July. 

"  I  am  inconsolable  at  finding  so  many  difficulties  in  the 
way  of  our  meeting,  but  I  could  not  dream  of  exposing  you 
to  danger,  and  you  know  how  dangerous  it  would  be.  Pity 
me !  I  have  no  comfort  in  the  world  but  you,  yet  every- 
thing is  against  us.  Your  tender  caresses  still  linger  in  my 
memory  ;  I  feel  them  still.  Ah  !  how  I  long  for  a  return 
of  those  moments  !  But  the  joy  would  kill  me  verily.  Had 
I  not  received  a  letter  from  205  :  before  I  got  yours,  you 
would  have  put  me  in  a  fever  by  speaking  so  much  of  your 
pleasures  and  the  lady  you  flirted  with  ;  but  I  am  free  from 
anxiety,  thanks  to  her,  for  she  writes  to  me  :  '  Yesterday  all 
the  ladies  were  at  court ;  but  they  must  have  been  very 
dull,  for  I  saw  our  courtiers  languishing  and  not  flirting  at 
all.  A  man  must  be  blase  indeed  to  be  reduced  to  playing 
with  children.  Yet  that  is  what  Konigsmarck  did  all  the 
evening ;  he  passed  the  time  making  houses  with  cards  for 
the  little  princess  and  the  little  chevalier.2  I  admired  him 
for  it,  because  he  seemed  anxious  not  to  give  his  lady-love 
cause  for  jealousy — that  is,  if  he  has  one,  but  it  is  hard  to 
say  whether  he  has  or  no.'  You  may  imagine  how  your 
ways  delight  me  and  bind  me  more  strongly  to  you.  But 
there  is  much  malice,  my  very  dear  one,  in  leaving  a  poor 
woman  in  such  dire  anxiety,  for  you  had  not  the  charity  to 
tell  me  the  name  of  the  lady  with  whom  you  were  enjoying 
yourself.  Except  for  knowing  how  admirably  you  behave, 
2O5's  letter  does  not  give  me  much  pleasure  ;  I  am  terribly 
afraid  she  may  suspect  something.  You  ought  to  be  the 
proudest  man  going,  for  every  one  admires  you.  You  are 
a  universal  favourite — even  old  women  bear  witness  to  your 
charms.  As  for  me,  I  count  it  the  highest  glory  to  possess 
such  a  lover.  Love  himself  is  not  more  beautiful  and 

1  This  number  cannot  be  traced ;  it  must  be  some  court  lady  at  Hanover. 

2  The  little  Princess  Sophie  Dorothea  and  Prince  George  Augustus.    This 
and  the  following  letter  contain  the  only  mention  of  the  Princess's  children 
throughout  the  correspondence. 


*84        THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

charming.  You  unite  tenderness  and  faithfulness  with  the 
most  perfect  manners.  Nothing  is  wanted  to  complete 
my  bliss  but  to  see  you  again  and  never  leave  you  more. 
I  spend  many  sleepless  nights  thinking  about  it  all ;  it 
would  be  infinitely  more  pleasant  were  I  to  spend  them  in 
converse  with  you,  Beloved.  That  is  a  joy  I  cannot  hope 
to  grasp  for  several  days  yet ;  but  I  am  resolved  not  to 
delay  much  longer. 

"  The  Electress  told  my  mother  that  nothing  could  be 
more  hideous  than  La  Platen's  yellow  cloak.  I  rejoice  that 
neither  she  nor  her  cloak  will  come  in  my  way.  I  am  thine, 
my  beautiful  one.  I  will  die  all  thine." 


Konigsmarck  to  the  Princess. 

"  [HANOVER,]  July  --. 

"  I  am  grieved  to  hear  that  your  mother  has  quarrelled 
so  with  your  father  about  Le  Batard.  It  is  easy  to  see 
which  side  is  the  weaker,  and  I  fear  we  can  hope  for  nothing. 
You  will  be  compelled  to  devote  yourself  more  closely  than 
•ever  to  the  Prince,  and  I  shall  have  to  seek  some  corner 
of  the  world,  and  beg  for  bread  that  I  may  not  starve. 
Frankly,  your  father's  conduct  surprises  me  ;  there  is  no 
doubt  it  is  prompted  by  La  Platen,  through  Bernstorff,  for 
she  rules  him  absolutely  and  he  is  almighty  with  your 
father.  Your  preceding  letter  cheered  me  much,  for  it 
seemed  that  Bernstorff  wished  to  interest  himself  on  your 
behalf;  but  he  is  as  deceitful  as  the  devil,  and  thinks  to 
trick  you.  Do  not  trust  his  smooth  words,  but  let  him 
show  his  good-will  in  deeds.  .  .  .  The  Elector  has  gone  to 
Herrenhausen.  I  asked  Prince  Max  where  he  is  to  be 
lodged,  and — would  you  believe  it? — he  is  to  be  put  in 
your  father's  apartments  next  your  own.  You  may  imagine 
my  dismay.  I  cannot  advise  you  to  return,  for  as  soon  as 
you  are  back  they  will  make  me  march.  When  you  are  at 
Herrenhausen  and  Prince  Max  lodged,  for  all  intents  and 
purposes,  in  your  apartments,  and  I  forced  to  leave  just  when 
I  hoped  to  find  joy  and  satisfaction — when  all  this  happens, 
what  will  become  of  me?  I  suffer  every  kind  of  misfortune 
— loss  of  money,  family  quarrels,  and  false  friends  ;  twenty 
men  who  were  under  me  are  advanced  above  me  ;  now  they 


LOVE'S  BITTERNESS  285 

are  trying  to  make  me  lose  rny  reputation,  and,  what  is 
worse,  I  am  always  sent  away  from  my  own  love. 

"The  party  was  very  merry.  The  little  prince  and 
princess  danced,  but  I  did  not  join.  I  walked  with  some 
others  by  the  river,  and  withdrew  early,  abandoning  myself 
to  my  sorrow  and  tears,  which  I  shed  abundantly.  When 
I  had  undressed  I  paced  alone  on  the  ramparts  until  one 
o'clock.  .  .  .  Monsieur  Rosse  came  here  yesterday.  He 
brings  news  that  the  Danes  are  marching  and  will  surely 
bombard  Hamburg.  You  cannot  believe  the  joy  this  news 
gives  me,  for  I  may  see  you  sooner  than  I  thought.  Marshal 
Podevils  has  left  without  any  one  knowing  whither  he  has 
gone.  That  is  mysterious.  God  grant  us  a  happy  ending 
to  our  troubles,  for  I  am  at  the  end  of  my  tether ! " 

"  [HANOVER,]  Monday  morning,  July  —. 

"  The  enclosed  letter  will  show  you  how  my  affair  in 
Flanders  is  going  on,  and  I  send  one  also  from  my  secre- 
tary ;  tell  me  what  you  think  of  it.  It  seems  he  wishes  to- 
free  me  from  my  chains,  but  they  are  borne  with  joy ;  all 
the  arguments  in  the  world  will  not  make  me  go  far  away 
from  you.  Who  are  the  people  who  are  trying  to  draw 
Prince  Max  again  into  a  troublesome  intrigue?  and  how 
go  things  with  your  father  and  mother  ?  Does  your  mother 
still  hope  to  succeed  in  your  cause,  or  has  she  given  it  up  ? 

"  I  went  to  pay  my  respects  to  La  Platen  yesterday, 
and  she  proposed  une  partie  pour  diner  chez  un  cabaretier, 
each  man  to  take  his  lady.  I  said  promptly,  '  I  will  take 
Madame  la  Capitaine '.  La  Platen  became  as  red  as 
scarlet,  and  screamed  out,  '  I  will  take  Monsieur  Balati '. 
She  was  in  such  a  temper  all  through  dinner  that  every 
one  noticed  it.  I  doubt  if  she  will  forgive  me  the  slight ; 
but  that  is  the  least  of  my  troubles.  So  long  as  you  are 
faithful  I  count  the  rest  as  nothing." 

The  Princess  to  Kbnigsmarck. 

"  [WIENHAUSEN,]  Wednesday,  July  — . 

"  I  am  at  last  out  of  anxiety ;  to-night  I  received 
two  of  your  letters.  I  am  grateful  for  your  kindness  in 
granting  my  prayer  about  the  campaign,  and  I  vow  that 


286   THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

I  will  never  ask  anything  that  might  harm  your  honour. 
As  they  tell  you,  Pless1  is  disgraced,  and  they  formerly 
offered  you  his  place ;  it  is  certain  they  will  now  offer  it 
again.  They  are  sounding  you  about  it.  I  am  terribly 
frightened  every  time  promotion  is  offered  you,  though  I 
am  greatly  distressed  to  think  that  I  am  the  cause  of  your 
refusing  it.  Yet  I  should  die  of  grief  if  you  were  to  ac- 
cept, for  it  would  take  you  away  from  me  so  far  that  it 
would  scarcely  leave  any  hope  of  my  seeing  you  again. 
You  know  well  enough  that  without  you  life  is  nothing  to 
me ;  you  take  the  place  of  all.  Do  not  abandon  me,  for 
the  sake  of  the  love  I  bear  you. 

"  I  tremble  at  all  you  tell  me  about  your  embarrass- 
ments ;  I  feel  them  more  than  if  they  were  my  own,  for 
you  are  dearer  to  me  than  myself.  My  father  and  mother 
have  quite  made  it  up,  and  are  on  better  terms  than  ever. 
I  do  not  give  up  all  hope  of  getting  my  wish,  and  I  will 
not  throw  up  the  game  even  if  they  refuse  me.  But  I  find 
this  a  very  unfavourable  time,  for  they  talk  of  nothing  but 
the  war,  and  difficulties  arise  on  every  side.  We  must  wait 
until  a  more  convenient  season.  My  father  is  more  affec- 
tionate to  me  than  ever,  and  my  mother  overwhelms  me 
with  kindness  ;  every  day  she  assures  me  that  all  she  pos- 
sesses in  the  world  is  for  me,  so  I  am  at  rest  about  that.  If 
only  my  father  were  the  same  I  should  be  free  of  my 
troubles.  I  will  die  rather  than  '  devote  myself  to  the 
Prince,'  as  you  think  I  shall  be  compelled  to  do.  There 
is  no  difficulty  I  will  not  conquer  to  be  united  to  you. 
It  is  the  dearest  wish  of  my  heart,  and  I  think  I  shall 
succeed.  I  trust  to  the  good-will  of  BernstonT.  My 
mother  urges  him  every  day  to  make  the  estates  of  the 
duchy  give  me  thirty  thousand  crowns  ;  but  this  terrible 
war  will  delay  the  business. 

"  I  gather  from  your  letter  that  I  must  not  think  of 
coming  back  to  Hanover  while  Max  is  lodged  near  me. 
We  are  really  very  unlucky  ;  everything  conspires  to  vex 
us,  in  little  things  as  in  great.  I  hope  he  will  soon  tire  of 
staying  at  Herrenhausen  and  return  here.  If  that  happens, 
I  shall  start  at  once  to  join  you.  .  .  .  You  will  always  be 
the  arbiter  of  my  destiny.  The  more  I  read  your  letter 

1(1  Monsieur  Pless,  who  formerly  belonged  to  the  Prince  of  Denmark." 
— Vide  Colt's  Despatches. 


LOVE'S  BITTERNESS  287 

the  more  I  am  touched  by  it.  You  tell  me  you  will  be 
•obliged  '  to  seek  some  corner  of  the  world  and  beg  bread 
that  you  may  not  starve '.  Do  you  count  me  as  nothing  ? 
and  do  you  think  I  will  ever  give  you  up,  whatever  may 
happen?  If  you  were  reduced  to  that  extremity,  be  sure 
nothing  in  the  world  would  hinder  me  from  following 
you  ;  I  would  starve  with  you.  Mat's,  mon  Dieu  !  do  not 
let  us  give  way  to  such  sad  thoughts.  We  may  perhaps 
be  happier  than  we  think.  Let  us  love  and  comfort  one 
another,  whatever  may  befall.  Perhaps  our  sorrows  will 
end  as  I  have  foreshadowed  ;  for  I  hope  to  get  what  I  wish 
when  things  right  themselves.  I  will  continually  urge  it, 
so  that  it  will  be  hard  to  resist  me. 

"  You  ask  who  are  those  who  try  to  stir  Max  up  again. 
They  are  Denmark  and  Wolfenbiittel.  It  is  quite  true,  for 
my  father  told  me,  and  it  is  feared  he  will  yield.  You  have 
forgotten  to  send  me  your  secretary's  letter  and  the  one 
from  Flanders  ;  pray  remember  to  do  so.  I  fear  if  you 
irritate  La  Platen  too  much  she  will  revenge  herself.  Deal 
gently  with  her,  but  not  too  gently.  I  know  well  she  will 
harm  me  all  she  can,  but  I  love  you  so  passionately  that  I 
cannot  be  reasonable." 

Konigsmarck  to  the  Princess. 

"  Tuesday  evening. 

"  I  forgot  to  enclose  the  letters  I  mentioned,  so  I  send 
them  now.  The  review  of  my  regiment  prevents  me  from 
sending  this  by  the  midday  post.  My  affairs  in  Sweden 
are  as  bad  as  they  can  be,  and  your  prospects  with  your 
parents  are  perishing.  It  is  enough  to  make  us  despair. 
..  .  .  Some  officers  are  just  coming  in  ;  I  am  obliged  to  end. 
Adieu,  tnon  ange.  How  dearly  I  love  you  !  Adieu." 

The  Princess  to  Konigsmarck. 

"  [CELLE,]  Friday,  July  ?. 

"  Are  you  not  ashamed  to  write  me  such  short  letters  ? 
The  one  yesterday  was  rude  in  its  curtness.  I  do  not  think 
there  are  more  than  ten  lines.  True,  you  make  excuses 
about  your  officers  and  duties  ;  but  I  am  not  satisfied  with 
such  reasons,  for  I  have  every  day  more  obstacles  than  you 


288    THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

will  ever  have  all  your  life,  yet  I  overcome  them,  and  write 
letters  so  long  that  I  fear  they  weary  you.  Your  secretary's 
letter  conceals  something  which  you  can  easily  find  out  if 
you  like.  Farewell,  this  will  be  short,  after  your  example." 

"[CELLE,]  Sunday,  July  9.,  One  o'clock  in  the  afternoon. 

"If  the  Count  de  Steinbock1  and  Count  de  la  Gardie 
are  still  with  you,  and  intend  coming  here,  I  entreat  you  to 
come  with  them.  It  is  a  feasible  pretext.  I  don't  think 
any  one  could  find  fault.  I  hope  when  you  get  here  Love 
will  aid  us,  and  we  shall  find  means  of  seeing  one  another. 
It  will  be  much  easier  to  see  you  here  without  any  fuss.  I 
shall  die  if  I  have  not  the  joy  of  embracing  you.  I  picture 
such  delights  when  we  meet  that  I  am  in  ineffable  trans- 
ports. Should  you  come,  let  me  know  beforehand,  so  that 
the  excess  of  my  joy  may  not  betray  me.  I  tremble  lest 
it  may  lead  me  to  do  some  dangerous,  extravagant,  and 
ridiculous  thing." 

"  [CELLE,]  Monday,  July  — . 

"  If  you  knew  the  joy  the  eagerness  you  show  for  us  to- 
live  together  some  day  gives  me  you  would  see  I  have 
nothing  else  in  my  head  but  to  succeed  in  the  business  I 
have  in  hand.  I  have  always  feared  it  was  only  your  kind- 
ness for  me  that  made  you  suggest  it,  and  your  inclination 
had  no  real  part ;  but  I  am  quite  free  of  that  trouble  now,, 
for  it  really  seems  you  want  it  as  much  as  I  do.  Be  sure  I 
have  nothing  so  near  my  heart,  and  I  shall  move  heaven 
and  earth  to  succeed.  Can  you  doubt  that  I  would  sacrifice 
with  pleasure  the  whole  universe  for  you  ?  I  ask  of  God 
only  an  opportunity  to  prove  what  I  say.  I  count  all  else 
as  nothing :  you  alone  suffice  for  me.  My  ambition  is 
limited  to  pleasing  you  and  keeping  your  heart  true.  You 
take  the  place  of  crowns,  kingdoms,  and  thrones  to  me,  and 
all  the  universe  would  not  console  me  for  your  loss. 

"  I  don't  think  I  can  make  Max  move  from  where  he 
is  lodged  at  Herrenhausen  ;  I  have  no  pretext,  for  our 

1  Count  Steinburg  (or  Steinbock)  was  an  Imperial  envoy,  who  was 
probably  at  Hanover  trying  to  arrange  matters  about  the  Danes  on  the  part 
of  the  Emperor.  Colt  mentions  him  a  little  later  as  being  in  the  Palatinate 
on  a  similar  mission. 


LOVE'S  BITTERNESS  289 

apartments  are  quite  separate,  and  have  no  communica- 
tion whatever  except  by  one  door,  which  I  can  close  if  I 
choose.  All  my  women  will  be  lodged  around  me." 

Konigsmarck  to  the  Princess. 

"[HANOVER,]  Tuesday  morning,  July  — . 

"  You  are  glad,  I  believe,  I  wrote  you  that  short  letter, 
so  that  you  might  have  something  to  scold  me  about.  I 
did  it  on  purpose,  so  you  might  know  by  experience  what  it 
is  like.  I  have  more  than  ten  of  yours  even  shorter  than 
mine,  but  /  did  not  call  you  rude  for  so  writing.  You  have 
licence  to  call  me  what  you  like,  but  you  are  unjust  not  to 
accept  the  excuse  of  my  military  duties.  I  know  one 
ought  never  to  admit  any  obstacle  to  one's  love,  but  ma 
cherie,  how  many  times  have  you  not  made  excuses — the 
sentinel,  the  watch,  or  some  silly  tale  of  people  hanging 
about  ?  Have  I  ever  said  a  word  ?  have  I  not  shown  more 
forbearance  than  you  ?  You  are  very  imprudent  to  play 
cards  with  the  General  and  his  wife  ;  you  certainly  will  not 
win  much.  He  is  a  very  gallant  general — at  least  Prince 
Max  told  me  so — but  he  forgets  his  place  in  praising 
you  so  highly.  I  should  like  to  see  you  playing  with  him 
— with  your  smiles  and  graces.  How  you  will  receive 
this  attention  and  that !  and  what  sweet  glances  you  will 
cast  him  to  reward  him  !  How  your  eyes  will  sparkle  at 
his  compliments !  I  fancy  I  see  you :  I  know  your  airs. 
Don't  think  I  am  jealous  ;  it  doesn't  matter  to  me.  I  know 
you  cannot  live  without  admiration,  and  therefore  it  is 
better  that  it  should  come  from  an  old  fool  than  a  young 
fop.  I  talked  to  Prince  Max  about  your  father's  affection 
for  you,  and  he  agreed  with  me  that  it  is  un  amitie  de  singe, 
since  he  does  nothing  for  you.  True  parental  love  consists 
in  settling  on  one's  daughter  a  comfortable  sum  ;  and  it  is 
just  now  that  your  father  ought  to  do  it,  for  if  he  should  be 
ruined  i_by  the  Danes] ,  on  what  would  you  live?" 

"[HANOVER,]  Friday,  July  ^. 

24 

"If  Count  Steinbock  had  been  going  to  Celle  I  would 
have  accompanied  him ;  but  as  he  is  not,  I  cannot  gather 
from  your  letter  how  I  am  to  come.  You  disguise  your 


290   THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

hand  so  much  that  I  can  hardly  make  out  what  you  write. 
I  should  dearly  love  to  come  and  see  you  ;  but  it  is  difficult, 
for  Count  Steinbock  has  gone,  and  they  don't  speak  about 
my  marching,  so  I  must  come  incognito.  But,  before  I  can 
come  disguised,  I  must  have  instructions,  and  it  is  not  easy 
unless  I  am  well  posted  in  what  I  am  to  do ;  I  might  take 
a  wrong  step  and  ruin  everything.  I  cannot  gather  from 
your  letter  what  it  is  you  wish,  and  I  cannot  make  out  from 
the  feigned  writing  which  way  I  am  to  come,  or  even  where 
you  are,  or  how  I  am  to  keep  myself  hidden  when  I  get  to 
Celle." 

The  Princess  to  Kbnigsmarck. 

"  [CELLE,]  Saturday,  July  ^. 

"  As  the  two  counts  have  gone  away,  you  have  no 
longer  any  pretext  for  coming  here  openly.  I  did  not 
think  the  thing  was  possible  otherwise.  I  am  opposed  to 
your  coming  disguised  :  it  is  too  dangerous,  and,  as  you 
say,  it  might  ruin  us  for  ever.  Do  you  think  that  if  I  had 
been  able  to  find  some  way  of  seeing  you  I  should  have 
waited  for  you  to  ask  me  how  ?  I  should  have  taken  ad- 
vantage of  it  long  since,  and  not  have  pined  like  this.  Do 
not  dream  of  coming  here  without  my  knowledge  ;  it  would 
be  a  miracle  if  you  escaped,  and  there  are  no  miracles  in  the 
time  we  live.  You  seem  displeased  because  I  don't  tell 
you  positively  about  my  return.  You  are  absolutely  master 
of  my  movements,  and  if  you  read  my  letters  carefully  you 
will  see  what  I  mean.  I  can  quite  understand  it  would  not  be 
pleasant  for  you  that  I  should  be  lodged  so  near  Max ;  and 
therefore  I  am  compelled,  in  spite  of  my  longing  to  see  you, 
to  stay  here.  You  suspect  no  end  of  things  ;  you  imagine  that 
if  I  had  a  real  wish  I  could  find  no  end  of  pretexts  to  come. 
I  thought  you  would  be  satisfied  with  my  delicacy  about 
Max.  It  seemed  to  me  that  if  you  could  have  induced  him 
to  come  here,  I  could  seize  the  advantage  by  starting  the 
very  day  he  left  Hanover.  But  do  you  decide,  and  do  not 
think  that  any  reason  or  consideration  whatever  will  pre- 
vent me  from  coming  to  you.  I  will  wait  for  your  answer 
that  I  may  do  as  you  wish. ;  but,  for  goodness'  sake  !  make 
it  so  clear  and  straightforward  that  I  shall  not  misunder- 
stand." 


THE  ELECTOR  ERNEST  AUGUSTUS  OF  HANOVER. 

From  an  old  print  in  the  British  Museum. 


LOVE'S  BITTERNESS 


291 


"  [CELLE,]  Monday,  July  -7. 

"  I  do  not  think  you  will  stay  long  enough  in  Hanover 
for  me  to  see  you  there.  My  father  is  in  great  trouble. 
The  Danes  are  advancing,  and  have  everything  necessary 
to  cross  the  Elbe.  That  will  put  me  at  a  greater  distance 
from  you.  Everything  combines  to  make  me  despair.  I 
dare  not,  in  the  state  matters  are,  press  my  father  about 
my  affairs,  for  if  the  war  turns  out  badly  things  will  go  hard 
with  him. 

"  The  beginning  of  your  letter  is  charming.  You  assure 
me  you  will  risk  your  life  to  see  me.  How  can  I  show  you 
my  gratitude  for  all  your  tenderness  ?  But  perhaps  you  no 
longer  feel  like  this,  and  your  love  has  gone.  If  that  be  so, 
I  wish  for  death !  Without  your  love  what  have  I  to  do 
with  life?  It  would  only  trouble  me,  since  it  is  for  you  I 
wish  to  live.  I  wrote  to  you  yesterday  all  that  you  wish 
to  know  ;  that  is  why  I  say  no  more.  Your  answer  will 
govern  my  movements  ;  I  may  possibly  get  it  to-morrow 
night  very  late.  I  am  sure  the  week  will  not  pass  without 
your  having  to  march  ;  everything  they  say  makes  me  think 
so.  In  case  that  should  be,  and  I  may  not  be  able  to  go 
to  you,  I  will  point  out  what  you  are  to  do  to  see  me  here." 

"  Twelve  at  Midnight. 

"  My  mother  tells  me  to-night  that  she  wishes  to  take 
me  to  Milady  Colt's  *  to-morrow.  I  fear  it  may  hinder  me 
from  writing  to  you — a  grief  to  me ;  for,  were  I  to  write 
every  moment  of  the  day,  my  pen  would  never  run  dry  on 
the  subject  of  my  love.  I  think  of  nothing  but  of  seeing 
you  soon  ;  the  thought  fills  me  with  joy.  I  asked  Chauvet, 
who  came  back  from  Engesen  to-night,  whether  my  father 
would  set  out  this  week.  He  assured  me  that  he  would 
not,  and  said  the  Elector  and  my  father  would  not  leave 
each  other ;  so  at  last  I  have  arrived  within  sight  of  my 
desire,  and  no  longer  fear  hindrance  in  the  way  of  seeing 
you.  I  much  approve  of  your  advice,  and  am  acting  upon 

1  Lady  Colt,  who  lived  at  Celle,  was  Sir  William  Dutton  Colt's  second 
wife.  The  only  child  of  this  second  marriage,  Leonora  Sophia,  was  born  at 
Celle,  and  the  Electress  Sophia  and  the  Duchess  of  Celle  stood  as  her  god- 
mothers. One  of  her  descendants  is  Mr.  N.  Bond,  to  whom  I  am  indebted 
for  this  information. 

19  * 


292    THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

it  with  all  possible  despatch.  I  believe  we  shall  be  fortu- 
nate and  have  everything  we  wish.  I  am  beginning  to 
hope  that  good  luck  will  at  last  attend  us.  Every  day  my 
affairs  improve ;  I  will  give  you  details  about  them  when 
we  meet.  Only  Max  worries  me.  I  will  not  suffer  him  to 
stay  where  he  is  at  Herrenhausen  ;  but  as  I  go  to  Hanover 
first,  and  not  to  Herrenhausen  until  late  the  next  day,  I 
hope  to  be  two  nights  running  in  Hanover.  Perhaps  they 
will  let  me  spend  the  remainder  of  the  week  there.  But 
I  feel  sure  the  Elector  and  my  father  will  set  out  together, 
and  in  that  case  Max  will  go  with  them.  I  will  do  exactly 
as  you  wish ;  you  have  only  to  say  what  I  am  to  do.  Let 
me  find  you  tender  and  loving.  You  will  be  very  cold  if 
you  resist  all  the  love  I  shall  bring  to  bear  on  you.  I  think 
I  shall  die  in  your  arms  ;  my  rapture  will  kill  me.  Adieu. 
Do  not  forget  to  come  to  me  the  very  day  I  arrive.  Were 
you  to  fail,  I  should  never  forgive  you  as  long  as  I  live. 
Farewell.  In  the  spirit  I  kiss  you  again  and  again ;  I 
would  give  half  my  blood  to  be  kissing  you  in  reality." 

Konigswarck  to  the  Princess. 

"[HANOVER,]  Monday,  July  — . 

"  I  went  to  dinner  yesterday  at  La  Platen's  ;  she  showed 
me  a  letter  from  the  Electoral  Prince,  which  was  very  kind, 
very  long,  and  rather  familiar.  I  hope  this  news  will  not 
give  you  ground  for  jealousy,  and  I  hope,  too,  the  fact  that 
Monsieur  de  la  Sitardie  is  at  the  point  of  death  will  not 
make  you  too  sad.  The  young  Countess  Platen  1  is  very 
ill,  so  all  the  house  is  in  grief.  They  say  the  Prince  will 
come  back  loaded  with  laurels,  so  it  seems  there  has  been 
something  to  do  over  there  after  all.  ...  I  did  all  I  could 
to  induce  Prince  Max  to  go  to  Celle,  but  he  declared  that 
he  had  business  here  which  prevented  him.  I  rage  about 
it.  ...  There  is  no  news  here  about  the  Danes,  which 
makes  me  hope  I  shall  not  march  for  some  time.  I  shall 
certainly  go  through  Celle  if  we  march  towards  the  Elbe, 
but  I  mean  to  have  a  private  audience  of  you,  so  prepare 
yourself  for  it.  It  seems  to  me  that  going  to  the  comedy 

1  Countess  Platen's  daughter,  Charlotte  Sophia,  who  afterwards  became 
Madame  Kilmansegge  and  accompanied  George  I.  to  England,  where  she  was 
created  Countess  of  Darlington. 


LOVE'S  BITTERNESS  293 

every  day  means  that  you  are  enjoying  yourself.  I  do  not 
grudge  you  pleasure  ;  on  the  contrary,  I  am  glad,  provided 
the  gallants  do  not  come  into  your  box  and  whisper  sweet 
things  in  your  ear,  as  I  hear  certain  people  do  at  the  comedy. 
I  am  delighted  you  should  enjoy  yourself,  and  will  try  to 
do  the  same, — that  is  why  I  have  asked  our  ministers  to 
supper.  La  Platen  will  not  be  one  of  us  because  of  her 
daughter's  illness.  I  fear  none  of  them  will  be  so  amusing 
or  witty  as  your  company,  but  I  can  live  without  amuse- 
ment and  you  cannot." 

The  Princess  to  Kdnigsmarck. 

"  [CELLE,]  Wednesday,  July  ^. 

"  At  last  I  have  your  answer,  the  one  I  have  been  waiting 
for  impatiently  to  determine  my  movements  ;  but  I  am 
none  the  wiser.  All  I  can  make  out  is  that  you  do  not 
want  me  to  come  for  a  few  days.  At  any  other  time  I 
should  have  been  very  angry,  but  now  I  am  as  indifferent 
as  you.  You  seem  to  be  very  phlegmatic  about  all  I  do, 
and  I  assure  you  I  am  equally  so  as  regards  yourself.  I  am 
rather  glad  to  be  in  this  mood,  for  otherwise  I  should  have 
been  hurt  about  the  fete  you  gave  last  night  to  La  Platen 
and  other  ladies.  Stubenfol  gave  a  full  account  of  it  at  the 
dinner  table.  '  Everybody  was  delighted.  No  party  could 
have  gone  off  better  ;  everything  showed  forethought  and 
gallantry.'  I  am  not  surprised  you  surpassed  yourself,  the 
ladies  were  well  worth  the  trouble,  and  when  a  host  is  in- 
spired by  such  charming  guests  he  must  needs  succeed  to 
perfection.  It  is  easy  for  me  to  follow  your  advice.  I  feel 
quite  content  to  stay  here  as  long  as  it  pleases  you.  Many- 
thanks  for  all  the  news  you  tell  me.  I  am  not  jealous  of 
La  Platen  because  she  has  had  a  letter  from  the  Prince.  I 
am  delighted  to  see  so  fine  a  union.  I  also  send  no  end  of 
good  wishes  for  the  continuation  of  your  pleasures  ;  I  should 
be  quite  distressed  to  interrupt  them  by  my  presence.  1 
don't  know  how  you  expect  me  to  reconcile  the  eagerness 
you  pretend  to  show  concerning  my  movements  with  the 
indifference  you  display  by  your  conduct.  If  you  had  even 
a  little  consideration  for  me  you  would  not  behave  as  you 
do.  Continual  pleasure-parties  take  place.  But  I  am 
wrong  to  complain  or  to  find  fault  with  your  behaviour  ;  it 


294   THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

is  my  conduct,  forsooth,  that  is  open  to  criticism  !  I  go, 
you  say,  every  day  to  the  comedy  ;  the  gallants  whisper 
in  my  ear  ;  they  caress  me  in  the  box  !  Is  it  to  fill  up  your 
paper  that  you  tell  such  falsehoods  ?  There  is  not  a  word 
of  truth  in  them.  Since  I  have  been  here  they  have 
played  a  comedy  only  twice,  and  each  time  I  have  been  in 
my  father's  box  alone  with  him.  I  am  always  considering 
your  wishes  :  I  am  ashamed  of  it,  for  I  carry  consideration 
much  further  than  you  deserve.  But  I  have  said  enough  on 
the  subject ;  it  is  so  unpleasant  that  I  am  very  glad  to 
end  it. 

"  You  wish  me,  I  believe,  to  tell  you  about  my  affairs. 
Yesterday  I  read  over  my  marriage  contract  ;  it  could 
hardly  be  more  disadvantageous  to  me.  The  Prince  is 
absolutely  master  of  everything,  for  there  is  nothing  I  can 
dispose  of  without  his  consent.  Even  the  clause  about  my 
dower  is  so  badly  worded  that  they  can  easily  cheat  me 
and  take  it  away.1  I  was  very  much  surprised  at  this  un- 
expected blow,  and  so  hurt  that  tears  started  to  my  eyes. 
My  mother  was  moved,  and  tried  to  comfort  me  ;  nothing- 
could  be  more  tender  or  kind  than  what  she  said  to  me. 
She  even  went  so  far  as  to  offer  to  sell  her  jewels  so  as  to 
settle  on  me  some  sort  of  an  income.  At  last  we  decided 

1 A  fragment  of  this  letter  relating  to  the  Princess's  marriage  settlement 
is  quoted  (in  the  original  French)  by  Palmblad  in  his  Aurora  Konigsmarck, 
and  Dr.  Kocher  has  seized  on  it  as  an  inaccuracy  which  goes  to  prove  that 
the  letters  are  not  genuine.  Yet  it  is  substantially  correct.  The  Duke  of 
Celle  was  undoubtedly  beguiled  into  a  marriage  contract  most  unfavourable 
to  his  daughter.  He  gave  her  a  marriage  portion  of  one  hundred  thousand 
thalers  and  the  estates  already  settled  on  her.  The  hundred  thousand  thalers 
promptly  went  into  the  Hanoverian  coffers  (there  was  no  Married  Woman's 
Property  Act  in  those  days).  The  estates  were  not  disposed  of  so  easily.  If 
no  son  were  born,  these  estates,  particularly  the  lordship  of  Wilhelmsburg, 
were  to  remain  the  Princess's ;  and  should  the  Prince  die  before  his  consort, 
this  property  and  all  its  revenues  were  to  revert  to  his  widow,  and  her 
children  could  only  inherit  them  after  her  death,  and,  as  a  widow,  the  Prin- 
cess was  to  be  entitled  to  a  dower  of  twelve  thousand  thalers.  But  the 
Princess  had  a  son,  Prince  George  Augustus,  and  so  these  estates  were  locked 
up ;  she  could  not  realise  them  or  raise  money  on  them  in  any  way.  She 
was  not  likely  to  become  a  widow  (however  devoutly  she  might  hope  for  that 
consummation),  and  so  she  was  penniless,  with  nothing  of  her  own  save  the 
allowance  the  Elector  of  Hanover  thought  fit  to  dole  out  to  her  for  her  dress 
and  petty  expenses.  Her  father,  of  course,  might  subsidise  her  occasionally, 
but  that  was  merely  a  matter  of  his  good-will.  Hence  her  efforts  to  obtain 
a  sufficient  sum  to  enable  her  to  set  up  a  separate  establishment  and  be  in- 
dependent. In  this,  as  in  other  things,  the  evidence  is  all  in  favour  of  the 
absolute  genuineness  of  these  letters. 


LOVE'S  BITTERNESS  295 

it  would  be  better  to  speak  to  my  father  first,  as  perhaps  he 
would  be  able  to  put  the  matter  right.  My  mother  did  so 
this  morning,  and  his  answer  was  favourable.  I  hope  I 
shall  get  what  I  want.  My  mother  advised  me  to  talk  to 
Stubenfol,  and  ask  him  to  push  the  thing  also,  to  show  him 
my  marriage  contract,  and  point  out  how  unjust  it  is  to  me  ; 
so  that  without  any  one  being  able  to  guess  my  plans,  I 
have  the  finest  pretext  ever  known." 

"  [CELLE,]  Thursday. 

"  I  am  even  angrier  to-day  than  I  was  yesterday.  The 
more  I  think  of  what  you  have  done  the  more  I  find  cause 
for  annoyance.  You  have  reason  to  be  thankful  for  having 
delayed  my  return,  for  had  I  arrived  piqued  as  I  am  you 
would  surely  have  had  a  piece  of  my  mind.  I  don't  know 
why  I  revert  so  often  to  the  same  grievance,  but,  though  I 
wish  to  speak  to  you  on  other  subjects,  I  unconsciously  fall 
back  on  this  one.  The  cause  is  not  hard  to  find.  Your 
unkindness  cuts  me  to  the  heart,  and,  though  I  ought  to 
get  used  to  it,  J  cannot  help  being  sensitive.  Here  are 
three  unkind  things  all  at  once,  which  one  surely  should 
not  expect  from  a  man  who  prides  himself  on  his  delicacy 
and  values  his  love  so  highly.  You  will  remember  you 
went  to  a  feast  at  La  Platen's  two  hours  after  I  left  Hanover 
for  Luisburg,  in  spite  of  the  overwhelming  grief  in  which 
you  left  me  and  the  sorrow  you  pretended  to  show.  You 
had  enough  self-control  to  hide  your  sadness  so  well  at  the 
feast  that  no  one  perceived  it.  The  second  party,  which 
you  say  was  so  innocent,  and  which  I  am  willing  to  believe 
was  so,  since  you  wish  it,  took  place  a  week  ago  ;  and  your 
most  magnificent  and  brilliant  entertainment  the  day  before 
yesterday.  Here  are  three  parties  in  a  very  short  time  to 
my  knowledge,  not  counting  those  I  shall  never  know 
about,  which,  being  secret,  are  doubtless  all  the  sweeter  to 
you.  I  am  beginning  to  get  used  to  your  unkindness,  and 
so  far  from  spending  the  night  weeping  and  wailing,  as  I 
was  weak  enough  to  do  at  Luisburg,  I  sleep  very  well,  and 
wake  up  fortified  and  angrier  than  ever.  I  am  quite  con- 
vinced that  this  is  a  matter  of  indifference  to  you  either 
way,  because  if  you  had  ever  so  little  regard  for  me  you 
would  have  behaved  very  differently.  But  I  am  certain 
you  do  not  love  as  I  do,  and  renounce  all  pleasure ;  you 


296   THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

are  incapable  of  so  strong  a  passion.  Do  not  restrain 
yourself,  I  entreat  you.  Think  only  of  your  pleasures ; 
count  me  as  nothing.  No  doubt  all  these  revelries  will 
terminate  in  a  complete  reconciliation  between  you  and  La 
Platen,  or  some  fresh  intrigue.  If  only  my  wishes  are 
needed  to  contribute  to  your  happiness,  you  can  have  them  : 
there  is  no  joy  I  do  not  wish  you.  It  so  happens  that 
Fortune,  to  give  me  revenge,  has  sent  hither  to-day  a  young 
baron  from  Mayence.  He  is  very  handsome,  well  built,  and 
magnificent.  You  are  no  doubt  willing  that,  rather  than 
die  of  ennui,  I  should  amuse  myself  with  him  !  I  believe 
you  to  be  still  too  much  my  friend  to  refuse  me  that  little 
comfort.  You  see,  I  am  franker  than  you,  for  though  you 
sent  me  word  of  your  fete  you  said  nothing  about  the  ladies 
and  La  Platen  coming  to  it ;  yet  the  whole  thing  was  got 
up  for  her !  Of  a  truth,  I  am  well  repaid  for  living  like  a 
nun  and  shunning  every  one,  even  men  of  sixty,  mats 
riimporte.  I  will  say  no  more !  You  ought  to  be  ashamed 
of  yourself  to  act  as  you  do.  I  will  not  reproach  you  ;  you 
ought  to  reproach  yourself.  But  it  shows,  alas !  there  is 
very  little  love  proof  against  absence.  Unfortunately  for 
me,  my  love  does  not  lessen,  and  I  am  too  tender  and 
sensitive.  Teach  me  how  to  learn  the  secret  of  indifference. 
I  must  end  this.  In  spite  of  all  my  resolutions,  it  might 
escape  me  that  I  love  you,  and  I  would  rather  die  than  tell 
you  so  to-day." 

Konigsmarck  to  the  Princess. 

"  Wednesday,  July  —. 

"  My  banquet,  as  you  call  it,  was  a  very  dull  affair, 
though  La  Platen  came  with  her  husband.  The  young 
countess  is  still  very  ill.  Madame  Bussche's  coach-horses 
took  fright  and  bolted,  and  the  ladies  were  so  unnerved  by 
the  accident  that  they  scarcely  spoke  two  words,  added  to 
which  it  was  very  bad  weather,  for  fine  rain  set  in  and  a 
great  wind  arose  which  made  us  break  up  very  early :  they 
all  went  home  before  eleven  o'clock.  I  did  not  sit  at  the 
centre  table,  as  there  was  no  room  ;  I  supped  with  Harren- 
burg  and  a  lieutenant  of  my  regiment,  and  was  delighted 
to  have  a  pretext  to  escape  from  my  guests.  I  was  a 
very  convenient  host ;  they  will  not  boast  much  about  my 


LOVE'S  BITTERNESS  297 

attentiveness.  But  how  could  I  be  attentive  when  I  was 
so  distrait  and  my  heart  far  away  with  you  ?  I  vow  I 
thought  more  of  you  than  of  all  my, guests  put  together. 
My  reason  for  giving  the  supper  was  because  I  am  going 
away  soon,  and  it  was  the  right  thing  for  me  to  do.  I  have 
been  so  often  to  their  dinners  that  it  was  necessary  for  me 
to  make  some  return.  Do  not  think  I  did  it  to  court  any 
one,  or  with  any  thought  of  intrigue.  I  vow,  on  my  per- 
dition, it  was  not  so.  I  have  told  you  the  true  reason  ; 
there  was  none  other,  I  swear  to  you.  Don't  draw  unjust 
comparisons.  As  a  man,  I  am  compelled  to  do  many 
things  which  as  a  woman  you  need  not  do.  Some  one 
has  been  telling  me  I  have  become  so  odd  that  it  is  no 
use  seeking  my  company.  I  said  :  '  When  good  fortune 
forsakes  a  man,  what  would  you  have  him  do?  I  get 
no  promotion  and  I  am  losing  all  my  possessions.'  He 
answered  :  '  What  about  love  ? '  I  replied  :  '  I  no  longer 
think  of  it '.  But  God  forgive  me,  it  was  the  greatest  un- 
truth I  have  ever  told  in  my  life." 

The  Princess  to  Konigsmarck . 

"  [CELLE,]  Friday,  July  ^. 

"  Since  you  tell  me  your  party  was  dull  and  tedious, 
and  everybody  went  home  early,  I  am  fain  to  believe  you ; 
though  Stubenfol  said  nobody  ever  was  so  merry  a  host  as 
you,  and  the  party  did  not  break  up  until  after  midnight. 
I  can  quite  believe  you  found  the  time  so  short :  the 
company  was  too  pleasant  to  admit  of  weariness.  You 
must  give  me  leave  to  doubt  that  you  thought  more  about 
me  than  of  any  one  present.  I  am  not  vain  enough  to 
flatter  myself  so  much.  I  count  myself  happy  if  you  think 
of  me  in  your  spare  time  (should  you  have  any),  for  every- 
one is  talking  about  your  entertainments  and  continual 
parties,  at  which  you  shine  so  brilliantly.  I  rather  think 
you  spoke  the  truth  when  you  said  you  '  no  longer  thought 
of  love '. 

"  But  I  must  speak  of  something  else.  I  want  to  forget 
all  about  that  affair :  my  thoughts  kill  me.  I  should  have 
been  willing  to  defer  my  return  to  Hanover  for  a  few  days 
had  your  fete  not  taken  place  just  then  to  distress  me,  for 


298   THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

the  very  moment  you  ask  me  to  stay  here  you  plunge  into- 
deeper  pleasures  there.  What  can  I  think  of  your  conduct  ? 
Must  it  not  convince  me  that  you  did  not  want  me,  so- 
that  you  might  better  amuse  yourself,  and  you  feared  my 
presence  would  be  a  hindrance  ?  You  ask  me  to  comfort 
you,  but  it  is  from  you  I  expect  comfort.  I  certainly  have 
no  pretext  for  staying  at  Hanover  only  three  or  four  days  ; 
I  shall  very  likely  be  there  for  twelve  or  fifteen  days  at 
least,  so  take  precautions  accordingly.  I  think  you  will 
know  your  movements  before  the  end  of  next  week,  and 
when  you  are  certain,  let  me  know  positively  what  you 
wish  me  to  do.  I  shall  not  think  of  leaving  here  until: 
you  let  me  know." 

Konigsmarck  to  the  Princess. 

"  HANOVER,  Friday,  July  —. 

"  I  have  received  your  very  charming  letter.  Your 
'  handsome  and  well-made  man  '  and  Monsieur  le  Huguenot 
more  than  convince  me  that  you  find  your  stay  at  Celle 
very  pleasant.  All  I  have  to  say  is  this — if  you  are  not 
pleased  with  me,  I  am  even  less  pleased  with  you,  and  if 
this  sort  of  thing  goes  on  I  will  no  longer  be  your  dupe.  I 
am  quite  able  to  find  answers  to  all  your  accusations,  but 
I  will  shorten  my  letter  for  fear  of  keeping  you  from  a 
pleasant  conversation  or  a  walk.  I  am,  Madame,  with, 
much  respect,  all  yours." 

..  r,       ,  July  23 

"  Sunday.  -^ — *—r-. 

'     A  ugust  2 

"  At  last  I  am  in  a  fit  state  to  answer  you  about  your 
baron  from  Mayence.  I  have  taken  a  few  hours  to  settle 
my  bile,  and  I  am  now  cool  enough  to  write  and  tell  you 
the  vengeance  you  propose  to  take  is  too  small,  even  if  I 
have  sinned  as  much  as  you  think  ;  but  my  oaths,  attested 
by  Gohr  and  d'Els,  whom  I  can  call  as  witnesses,  must 
surely  convince  you  that  Stubenfol  lied.  Don't  you  think 
you  have  been  a  little  quick  to  take  your  revenge  ?  I 
must  needs  send  my  witnesses,  since  you  will  not  believe 
my  word  of  honour.  In  any  case,  I  will  never  forgive  your 
tricks  with  the  baron.  Your  natural  tendency  shows  itself 
again.  You  are  only  too  glad  to  seize  any  pretext  for 


LOVE'S  BITTERNESS  299 

flirting  ;  you  would  rather  die  than  miss  the  chance.  What 
am  I  to  think  of  you  ?  You  know  my  weakness  :  I  am 
naturally  jealous,  and  such  behaviour  as  yours  makes  me 
a  hundred  times  worse.  How  many  times  have  you  urged 
me  not  to  give  way  to  violence,  but  first  to  hear  your 
excuses  and  the  truth  ?  If  you  were  piqued  about  my 
supper,  why  didn't  you  write  and  scold  me  as  much  as 
you  liked  ?  But  no !  you  were  too  charmed  with  the 
baron  ;  he  is  young,  well  made,  handsome,  and  captivates 
you, — that  is  why  you  find,  or  pretend  to  find,  my  conduct 
so  guilty.  Oh !  it  is  too  much !  I  can  no  longer  deceive 
myself.  Your  letter  of  Friday  confirms  my  worst  fears. 
Your  excuses  for  not  coming  here  do  not  deceive  me. 
You  are  the  most  unfaithful  of  women.  Go  to,  cruel  one! 
and  flirt  with  your  new  cavalier.  Why  have  you  held  me 
so  long  with  your  deceitful  airs  and  promises?  Why  have 
I  sacrificed  everything  for  you?  You  are  not  content  to 
take  away  my  peace  of  mind,  but  you  rob  me  of  my  honour, 
my  reputation,  and  all  I  have  in  the  world.  Is  it  not  for 
such  as  you  that  I  have  neglected  everything  ?  You  know 
the  state  of  my  affairs.  I  am  well  rewarded,  truly  !  I  will 
fly  from  Hanover,  where  I  might  meet  you.  Did  not  my 
house  force  me  to  stay  here,  I  would  leave  to-morrow.  I 
hope,  however,  to  find  an  honourable  pretext  for  getting 
away ;  and  should  the  Danes  confiscate  my  lands  in 
Holstein,  that  will  serve.  Madame,  I  am  not  dishonest,  like 
you.  I  will  send  you  back  everything  I  have  belonging  to 
you,  and  as  soon  as  I  get  to  Hamburg  I  will  take  counsel 
with  my  friends  as  to  my  future  plans.  I  will  return  to  my 
own  people,  and  though  I  may  have  neglected  them  the 
future  shall  make  amends.  '  The  continual  ceremonies  in 
which  I  shine '  are  with  my  dragoons  ;  I  am  with  them 
every  day,  drilling  them,  and  for  three  days  I  have  not 
been  anywhere  except  to  the  hunt,  in  which  I  take  part 
every  day.  Have  I  not  always  given  you  the  choice  of 
coming  here  or  staying  at  Celle?  I  did  it  on  purpose  to  see 
if  you  had  sufficient  love  to  risk  coming  ;  but  I  soon  saw 
something  was  keeping  you  back,  though  1  was  ignorant  of 
its  being  a  '  handsome,  well-built  young  baron  '.  You  now 
ask  me  to  tell  you  positively  what  you  are  to  do.  Why 
the  devil  should  you  want  me  to  give  you  directions  ? 
Were  I  to  tell  you  to  stay  and  amuse  yourself  with  your 


300   THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

new  lover,  or  were  I  to  tell  you  to  come  here,  it  would  not 
matter — you  would  find  some  excuse  for  quarrelling  with 
me  in  either  case." 

"  Saturday.  ~ —     *  . 
J    August  3 

"  My  letter  of  yesterday  has  no  doubt  surprised  you. 
When  I  read  it  over  I  said  to  myself:  'Is  it  possible  I 
could  come  to  such  a  pass  as  to  write  such  a  letter  to  the 
woman  who  is  dearer  to  me  than  all  the  world  ? '  I  was 
ashamed  to  send  it,  but  after  reading  your  letter  three  times 
I  determined  to  send  mine  on  to  you.  Looking  at  things 
in  the  right  light,  I  ought  to  be  more  manly  ;  I  ought  not 
to  be  so  sensitive.  I  am  much  obliged  to  Stubenfol  for 
spreading  such  monstrous  reports  about  my  banquet.  You 
know  the  man  he  is — 'Much  ado  about  nothing'.  I  don't 
wonder  he  found  my  banquet  a  fine  one,  for  he  ate  six 
partridges  all  by  himself,  and  drank  a  whole  barrel  of 
sherry.  It  was  the  finest  and  grandest  festival  he  ever 
attended — was  it?  Give  him  the  same  thing  in  a  pig-sty 
and  he  will  exaggerate  it  into  having  been  served  in  the 
finest  flower  garden  of  Italy.  ...  I  was  coming  to  the 
baron  presently,  but,  for  fear  I  should  lose  my  temper, 
I  will  try  to  go  to  sleep  instead  :  it  is  two  o'clock.  If 
I  went  on  much  longer  I  should  write  things  I  should  be 
sorry  to  say  to  a  lady." 

The  Princess  to  Konigsmarck. 

"  [CELLE.  undated.] 

"  I  expected  to  receive  an  infinity  of  excuses  from  you, 
and  the  most  beautiful  things  ever  written,  to  appease  me. 
I  was  much  deceived,  for  I  found  your  letter  quite  the 
contrary  :  you  are  still  too  proud  to  beg  my  pardon.  I 
could  not  help  laughing  to  see  how  you  fell  into  my  trap, 
and  how  my  '  baron '  sticks  in  your  throat.  Your  anger 
gives  me  so  much  joy  that  I  have  quite  forgotten  mine. 
I  am  delighted  to  have  revenged  myself  singly,  and  I  like 
myself  all  the  better  for  it.  I  hope  you  will  be  free  from 
anxiety  before  you  receive  this  letter,  for  I  have  sent  you 
the  portrait  of  the  personage,  and  that  suffices.  But  the 
idea  of  your  giving  yourself  such  airs !  I  am  the  injured 


LOVE'S  BITTERNESS  301 

one,  yet  you  scold  me !  That  is  rather  an  odd  way  to 
seek  reconciliation.  How  tired  I  am  of  being  angry — 
otherwise  you  would  not  be  let  off  so  easily.  But  I  have 
a  weakness  for  you  which  will  not  suffer  me  to  quarrel 
with  you  for  long.  I  should  be  delighted  to  make  it  up 
with  you  :  you  have  only  to  make  my  mind  easy  about 
your  banquet,  and  swear  you  love  me  as  much  as  ever. 
I  will  forget  and  forgive  everything,  and  make  you  see  in 
return  that  you  are  very  wrong  to  be  dissatisfied  with  me, 
for  I  deserve  all  your  love,  and  do  everything  to  please 
you.  When  you  have  realised  the  injustice  you  do  me 
by  your  mad  imaginings,  you  will  ask  my  pardon,  and 
deeply  repent  of  your  bad  and  wicked  thoughts.  I  fear 
our  first  interview  will  be  spent  wholly  in  explanations, 
and  the  love  and  tenderness  which  alone  ought  to  be 
present  will  be  conspicuous  by  their  absence  ;  but  you  will 
have  it  so — it  is  not  my  fault. 

"  I  am  coming  to  you  on  Tuesday  or  Wednesday.  I 
have  already  sent  you  word  by  Stubenfol,  and  I  hope  to 
find  you  tender  and  faithful.  If  you  be  not  I  shall  die, 
for  I  am  fain  to  confess  that  I  love  you  to  distraction :  in 
spite  of  all  my  anger  and  annoyance,  I  have  never  loved 
you  more. 

"  I  forgot  to  speak  about  what  you  told  me  a  few  days 
ago — that  you  had  made  a  vow  to  keep  the  sixth 1  com- 
mandment if  we  should  ever  live  together.  There  are  no 
vows  I  would  not  joyfully  make  to  be  with  you  always, 
too :  I  wish  for  nothing  else  in  the  world  ;  all  my  thoughts 
are  bent  upon  it." 

1  The  seventh  in  our  liturgy. 


CHAPTER  XXI. 

THE  CAMPAIGN  AGAINST  THE  DANES. 

There  is  not  in  the  fierce  world  anything, 

Scorn,  agony,  stripes,  bonds,  fears,  woes,  deep  shame, 

Kingdomless  ruin,  but  with  open  hands, 

With  joyous  bosom  open  as  to  love, 

Yea,  with  soul  thankful  for  its  great  delight, 

And  life  on  fire  with  joy,  for  this  love's  sake 

I  would  not  embrace  and  take  it  to  my  heart. 

SWINBURNE. 

THE  Princess  came  back  to  Hanover,  and  a  few  days 
later  Konigsmarck  set  out  for  the  war,  so  their  meetings 
were  few  and  brief.  She  was  expected  to  proceed  to  Her- 
renhausen,  where  the  electoral  court  then  was  ;  but  she 
lingered  in  Hanover,  excusing  herself  on  the  ground  that 
Prince  Max's  apartments  at  Herrenhausen  adjoined  those 
set  apart  for  her.  The  excuse  was  flimsy,  for  Prince  Max 
had  recently  been  staying  with  her  parents  at  Celle  while 
she  was  there  ;  and  though  his  gallantry  had  once  threatened 
to  exceed  the  friendship  allowed  to  a  brother-in-law,  that 
was  long  ago,  and  he  now  treated  her  with  only  ordinary 
courtesy.  But  she  had  raised  a  similar  objection  success- 
fully at  Luisburg,  and  it  served  to  delay  her  visit  to  Her- 
renhausen until  Konigsmarck  left  Hanover.  His  orders  to 
march  came  suddenly,  on  his  return  from  a  visit  to  the 
Princess,  and  he  had  to  start  the  same  night  without  wish- 
ing her  good-bye.  He  left  her  apartments  piqued  because 
she  seemed  to  be  in  a  hurry  for  him  to  go :  in  truth,  she 
was  conscious  of  being  watched  by  spies,  and  snatched 
every  moment  of  her  lover's  company  with  a  fearful  joy. 
The  first  of  the  following  letters  of  the  Princess  was  written 
before  she  knew  Konigsmarck  had  left  Hanover  for  the 
•campaign  ;  the  next  two  or  three  describe  an  interview  she 
had  with  Countess  Platen,  of  which  the  most  notable  point 
is  that  the  Countess  tried  to  persuade  Sophie  Dorothea 
that  it  was  not  she,  but  the  Electress  Sophia,  who  had 

302 


THE  CAMPAIGN  AGAINST  THE  DANES  303 

made  mischief  with  the  Elector  about  her  intimacy  with 
Konigsmarck.  The  Princess's  letters  end  with  reproaches 
to  her  lover  for  having  left  her  so  unkindly,  and  having 
sent  her  no  word  since  he  went  away. 

"  [HANOVER,]  Monday,  -Z^LH. 

*     A  ugust  9 

"  It  is  four  o'clock,  and  I  can  no  longer  hope  to  see  you 
to-day.  Que  je  suis  malhenreuse  !  Vous  rfetes  pas  content 
de  moi.  I  fancy  your  good-bye  was  not  so  tender  as  it 
ought  to  have  been.  I  am  overwhelmed  with  many  troubles. 
You  are  going  away,  and  I  shall  not  see  you  for  ever  so 
long.  I  am  so  distressed  that  I  wish  myself  dead  this  very 
moment.  I  have  not  slept,  I  have  a  dreadful  beating  of 
my  heart,  and  I  am  so  grieved  at  not  seeing  you  to-day 
that  I  am  almost  beside  myself.  Life  is  unbearable  with- 
out you  :  how  cruel  of  you  to  doubt  it  !  I  cannot  forgive 
your  cruel  injustice  last  evening.  Is  it  possible  you  think 
me  capable  of  feeling  joyous  and  gay  on  the  eve  of  your 
departure — I,  who  would  like  to  be  dead  all  the  days  I 
spend  without  you,  and  only  live  when  I  see  you  again  ? 

"  My  mother  has  written  to  me  about  Max.  This  is 
what  she  says  :  *  ye  ne  conseille  pas,  2OI  (tnot)  de  s'embar- 
rasser  du  voisinage ;  si  le  voisin  fait  trop  de  bruit,  il  riy  a 
que  faire  passer  volre  lit  dans  fantichambre ;  par  la  vous 
eviterez  le  bruit,  et  vous  eloigneres  du  galant'.  I  shall  know 
what  to  do !  My  mother  also  tells  me  the  Electress  has 
thanked  her  for  letting  me  come  back,  and  said  she  was 
delighted  to  see  me  again.  My  mother  says,  considering 
the  kindness  the  Electress  shows  me,  it  is  the  right  and 
proper  thing  for  me  to  have  left  my  parents  and  pay  her 
my  court,  but  she  hopes  at  some  future  time  the  Electress 
will  be  good  enough  to  let  me  return  to  Celle.  That  makes 
me  despair  more  than  ever,  for  I  dare  not  hurry  rny  return 
home,  since  my  mother  does  not  wish  it,  and  I  have  only 
just  come  back  to  Hanover." 

"[HANOVER,]  Monday,  Eleven  at  night. 

"  I  have  been  to  Herrenhausen.  The  Electress  told  me 
she  had  spoken  to  the  Elector,  and  he  thought  it  absurd 
for  me  to  imagine  such  things  about  Max,  and  said :  '  It 
is  only  a  silly  excuse  she  is  making.  I'll  take  care  that 


304        THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

Max  won't  thrust  himself  upon  her  in  any  way.'  He  also- 
said  many  other  things,  too  long  for  me  to  tell  all  at  once. 
When  he  had  finished  talking,  the  Electress  asked  him  if 
she  were  to  repeat  everything  he  had  said  to  me.  At 
first  he  said  '  Everything  you  like,'  but  afterwards  he  said 
'  No'.  I  asked  if  the  Elector  wished  me  to  remain  ignorant 
of  what  he  had  said,  because  then  he  wouldn't  understand 
my  coming  to  Herrenhausen  after  saying  I  should  stay  in 
Hanover,  and  the  Electress  (who  is  by  way  of  being  very 
attentive  to  me)  said  she  should  write  to  me  a  note  to- 
morrow with  full  instructions  what  I  am  to  do,  but,  what- 
ever happens,  I  shall  now  be  here  the  whole  week.  The 
Elector  will  be  obliged  to  start  in  a  few  days,  and,  from 
what  the  Electress  says,  Max  will  be  one  of  the  party. 

"  La  Confidente  went  last  night  to  La  Platen's,  who 
talked  a  good  deal  about  me.  She  said  that  people  do- 
not  understand  the  retired  life  I  lead,  and  every  one  is 
talking  about  it ;  but  that  is  the  least  of  my  troubles,  for 
I  scorn  the  whole  world  so  long  as  we  love  one  another.  I 
had  hoped,  as  I  can  see  you  no  longer,  that  I  should  re- 
ceive a  line  from  you  to-day  ;  I  am  much  disappointed 
that  nothing  has  come.  I  wonder  I  have  the  strength 
to  write  to  you.  I  am  distressed  beyond  words  at  your 
departure  on  this  campaign.  Mon  Dieu  !  why  have  you 
gone?  What  would  I  not  give  to  scold  you  in  person 
for  the  injustice  you  did  me  yesterday  when  you  thought 
I  wanted  you  to  leave  me  sooner  than  usual  ?  I  would 
give  my  warm  blood  and  very  life  to  lengthen  the  moments 
we  spend  together. 

"  La  Confidente  says  that  La  Platen  asks  to  see  me 
to-morrow;  I  fear  she  wants  an  explanation.  I  expect 
to  be  terribly  lectured  about  my  ways,  but  I  will  answer 
her  as  she  deserves.  Max  is  ill :  I  wish  he  were  ill 
enough  to  change  his  quarters.  I  am  ill  too,  but  my 
sickness  comes  from  loving  you,  and  only  you  can  soothe 
my  pain  and  cure  me." 

"[HANOVER,]  Tuesday,  August  i. 

"  I  cannot  be  comforted  because  I  see  you  no  longer. 
I  am  sad,  too,  at  not  having  had  a  word  from  you ;  there 
may  be  some  coldness,  and  I  love  you  so  passionately  that 
I  wish  myself  dead  if  you  love  me  not  likewise.  I  had  a 


THE  CAMPAIGN  AGAINST  THE  DANES          305 

note  this  morning  from  the  Electress,  and  she  says  :  '  The 
Elector  told  me  over  again  the  same  things  I  told  you 
yesterday — that  it  would  be  absurd  for  you  not  to  come 
to  Herrenhausen  through  such  unfounded  scruples,  and  he 
will  answer  for  any  slander  they  may  circulate  ;  Max  will 
not  force  himself  on  you  in  any  way,  and  you  have  only 
to  lock  the  door.  So  it  rests  with  you  to  come  whenever 
you  like,  when  you  have  quite  done  making  a  fuss.'  She 
adds  to  that  much  love.  I  will  turn  and  twist  as  much  as 
I  possibly  can,  so  that  the  Elector  will  have  gone  before 
I  get  there. 

"  I  fear  the  letter  I  wrote  to  you  yesterday  has  not  the 
smallest  amount  of  sense  in  it.  I  was  in  a  pitiable  state, 
for  your  abrupt  departure  shows  that  you  are  not  pleased 
with  me,  and  I  was  so  ill  I  could  hardly  bear  myself.  La 
Platen  is  coming  to  see  me  ;  I  will  tell  you  our  conversation 
before  I  go  to  bed. 

"  Eleven  at  night. 

"  I  have  had  a  three  hours'  tete-a-tete  with  La  Platen. 
The  most  important  part  of  the  conversation  is  that  she 
knows  the  Electress  lectured  me  last  year  about  you, 
and  said  that  so  far  from  the  Electress  speaking  to  the 
Elector  in  the  way  she  wished  me  to  believe,  c'est  elle  qui 
lui  en  a  rompu  la  tete,  et  que  jamais  felecteur  ne  lui  a  dit  un 
mot,  and  afterwards  the  Electress  told  several  people  that 
she  had  warned  me  to  change  my  conduct  with  you,  as  it 
did  you  harm.  La  Platen  then  went  on  to  entreat  me  to 
alter  my  ways  \changer  de  maniere\  saying  I  lead  such  a 
retired  life  that  everybody  wonders  at  it.  People  were 
complaining  that  I  neither  look  at  nor  speak  to  them ;  I 
could  not  imagine  all  they  say,  because  it  was  not  natural 
for  a  woman  of  my  age  to  turn  her  back  so  decidedly  on 
society,  and  they  are  seeking  to  find  the  cause  of  it  all.  I 
answered  that  if  I  had  made  any  difference  between  one 
and  another,  if  I  had  not  treated  everybody  in  the  same 
way,  people  would  have  had  a  right  to  find  fault ;  but  as  I 
favoured  nobody,  they  have  no  cause  to  complain.  She 
spoke  several  times  about  you ;  she  is  only  too  pleased 
with  you.  At  last  we  parted  as  intimates ;  no  friendship 
could  have  been  confirmed  by  more  promises  than  she 
made  me. 

20 


306        THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

"  I  have  not  been  out  of  my  room  to-day,  and  my 
journal  will  be  very  long.  I  am  going  to  bed,  as  I  am 
worn  out,  but  I  shall  not  be  able  to  sleep.  How  can  I, 
when  I  have  such  a  big  boy  as  you  in  my  head  ?  " 

"[HANOVER,]  August  5. 

"  This  is  the  sixth  day  since  you  left,  and  I  have  not 
had  a  word  from  you.  What  neglect  and  what  disdain ! 
In  what  way  have  I  deserved  such  treatment?  Is  it  for 
loving  you  to  adoration,  for  having  sacrificed  everything? 
But  what  use  to  remind  you  of  this  ?  My  suspense  is 
worse  than  death  ;  nothing  can  equal  the  torments  this 
cruel  anxiety  makes  me  suffer.  What  an  ill  fate  is  mine, 
good  God  !  What  shame  to  love  without  being  loved  !  I 
was  born  to  love  you,  and  I  shall  love  you  as  long  as  I  live. 
If  it  be  true  that  you  have  changed,  and  I  have  no  end  of 
reasons  for  fearing  so,  I  wish  you  no  punishment  save  that 
of  never  finding,  wherever  you  may  be,  a  love  and  fidelity 
equal  to  mine.  I  wish,  despite  the  pleasures  of  fresh  con- 
quests, you  may  never  cease  to  regret  the  love  and  tender- 
ness that  I  have  shown  you.  You  will  never  find  in  the 
whole  world  any  one  so  loving  and  so  sincere.  I  love  you 
more  than  woman  has  ever  loved  man.  But  I  tell  you  the 
same  things  too  often  ;  you  must  be  tired  of  them.  Do 
not  count  it  ill,  I  implore  you,  nor  grudge  me  the  sad 
consolation  of  complaining  of  your  harshness.  I  am  very 
anxious  for  fear  they  have  detained  the  letter  you  were  to 
have  written  to  me  from  Celle.  I  have  not  received  a 
word;  everything  conspires  to  crush  me.  Perhaps  in  ad- 
dition to  the  fact  that  you  no  longer  love  me,  I  am  on 
the  eve  of  being  utterly  lost.  It  is  too  much  all  at  once  ; 
I  shall  break  down  under  it.  I  must  end  this  to-morrow; 
I  shall  go  to  Communion." 

This  is  the  last  of  the  Princess's  letters  preserved  in  this 
correspondence  ;  she  ends  as  she  began,  full  of  love  and 
tender  reproaches.  The  remaining  letters  are  written  by 
Konigsmarck,  and  we  have  to  invoke  the  aid  of  external 
evidence  to  fill  up  the  blanks.  Unfortunately  this  is  meagre, 
for  Colt  (whose  entry  book  has  been  a  trusty  guide)  had 
left  Celle  on  his  last  diplomatic  mission  early  in  July.  His 
orders  were  to  attend  the  Elector  of  Saxony  during  his 


THE  CAMPAIGN  AGAINST  THE  DANES          307 

campaign  on  the  Rhine.  The  fatigue  of  the  long  marches 
was  too  much  for  him,  and  he  died  suddenly  at  the  Saxon 
headquarters,  in  August,  a  martyr  to  duty  if  ever  there  was 
one,  leaving  his  widow,  who  was  at  Celle,  very  badly  off. 
He  was  succeeded  by  Cresset,  who  did  not  take  up  his 
duties  at  the  courts  of  Celle  and  Hanover  until  the  follow- 
ing January. 

The  campaign  against  the  Danes  does  not  appear  to 
have  come  to  a  regular  engagement ;  the  object  of  the 
northern  Powers  was  rather  to  frighten  the  Duke  of  Celle 
and  the  Elector  of  Hanover  into  submission  than  to  drive 
them  to  open  warfare  ;  and  even  when  the  two  armies  were 
in  sight  of  one  another,  separated  only  by  the  Elbe,  a  truce 
was  being  negotiated.  Konigsmarck  gives  a  brief  account 
of  his  march  to  the  Elbe,  which  seems  to  have  been  from 
Hanover  to  Celle,  thence  to  Liineburg  via  Epsdorff. 

Konigsmarck  to  the  Princess. 

"[ON  THE   MARCH,]  Saturday.  Au^ts 
'  Tuesday,  August  15 

"  I  hope  you  had  my  letter  yesterday ;  it  was  sent  by 
express,  but  I  fear  it  may  not  have  been  delivered  to  you. 
I  went  to  dinner  at  Celle.  Their  Highnesses  asked  me  if 
Madame  la  Princesse  were  still  in  Hanover.  I  told  them 
I  had  the  honour  of  playing  cards  with  her  and  Madame 
1'Electrice  on  Saturday,  and  since  then  I  had  seen  neither 
of  them.  Biilow  gave  me  so  much  to  drink  que  favazs  une 
bonne  raidis.  Later  they  took  me  to  Madame  Boidavis's  ; 
but  I  don't  remember  what  I  did  or  said  there,  and  as  I 
had  to  return  to  my  quarters,  I  did  not  stay  very  long. 
Monsieur  Goritz  arrived  after  dinner.  He  talked  a  long 
time  with  Monseigneur  le  Due,  and  I  had  the  honour  of 
conversing  with  Madame  la  Duchesse.  We  talked  of  serious 
and  pressing  matters,  but  I  had  so  much  wine  afterwards 
that  I  have  clean  forgotten  the  conversation,  wherefore  I 
am  very  sorry.  Thus  the  day  ended.  Wednesday  and 
Thursday  went  by  in  marching,  hunting,  and  being  very 
badly  lodged.  Friday,  August  4,  I  had  your  letter.  Don't 
think  I  had  forgotten  you  ;  all  the  time  I  was  thinking  of 
you,  whatever  work  my  regiment  may  have  given  me.  I 
even  forgot  my  duties  dreaming  of  you  ;  you  are  the  only 

20  * 


3o8    THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

being  in  the  world  who  would  make  me  forget  them.  My 
great  anxiety  is  lest  you  should  be  at  Herrenhausen.  You 
know  what  that  means :  Prince  Max  is  there.  ...  I  can- 
not forget  how  you  hurried  me  out  of  your  apartments  last 
Monday — God  knows  for  what  reason.  But,  ma  cherie^ 
don't  think  I  suspect  you  of  any  mean  design — no,  I  believe 
you  are  incapable  of  any  such  thing ;  it  was  because  it  was 
absolutely  necessary  that  I  should  go,  lest  we  should  be 
discovered.  .  .  .  Adieu,  mon  ange.  Think  of  him  who  wor- 
ships you,  and  don't  let  him  go  out  of  your  thoughts  for 
one  moment.  Believe  me  loving  and  faithful  and  proof 
against  all.  Hell  and  its  torments  will  never  make  me 
change.  I  will  be  faithful  until  death,  and  after  death." 

"[ON  THE  MARCH,]  August  -. 

"  Your  letter  clearly  shows  that  you  will  always  remain 
a  child  and  let  every  one  govern  you.  Your  mother  orders 
your  movements  more  than  you  do  yourself.  Because, 
i'faith,  she  tells  you  the  Electress  is  so  kind  that  you  should 
pay  her  great  attention,  you  are  let  in  for  staying  at 
Herrenhausen  and  Hanover,  in  spite  of  your  wishes  and 
mine.  Pull  yourself  together,  and  remember  you  are  a 
woman  and  no  longer  a  child.  Don't  let  them  lead  you 
by  the  nose  in  this  way.  It  is  shameful !  Such  childish 
fears  do  not  become  true-born  hearts.  Follow  your  own 
inclinations,  not  those  of  others.  I  daresay  if  La  Platen 
ordered  you  to  live  in  a  particular  way  you  would  obey 
her,  especially  if  she  told  you  the  Elector  thought  it  right. 
He  has  only  to  say  it  is  '  absurd '  for  you  to  change  your 
plans,  and  forget  in  a  moment  all  that  you  have  sworn 
a  thousand  times  to  me.  Say  to  your  heart,  '  Courage, 
heart  of  mine'." 

"[FROM  THE  CAMP,]  August  -. 

"  I  hope  my  two  preceding  letters  have  reached  you. 
This  morning  I  received  yours  of  August  I.  I  hope  you 
will  be  satisfied  with  what  I  told  you.  I  did  not  fail  to 
remember  you,  but  I  could  not  help  my  letter  miscarrying  ; 
I  'swear  that  I  sent  it  by  that  peasant.  ...  I  vow  by  all 
that  is  holy  my  love  for  you  has  not  lessened.  If  my 
conduct  has  altered,  it  is  because  I  saw  you  so  different 


THE  CAMPAIGN  AGAINST  THE  DANES 


309 


that  I  hardly  knew  you.  While  I  see  you  so  timid  and 
troubled  what  am  I  to  think  ?  You  will  not  run  the  least 
risk  for  me.  If  what  La  Platen  told  you  be  true,  the 
Electress's  favour  will  please  you  mightily.  Remember 
what  I  have  told  you  about  her.  I  doubt  whether  the 
Elector  ever  spoke  to  the  Electress,  or  if  she  ever  troubled 
him  on  the  subject.  I  know  you  must  be  careful.  La 
Platen  may  be  right  about  that  coincidence  ;  there  is  much 
likelihood,  for  the  Elector's  haughtiness  does  not  agree 
with  what  the  Electress  told  you.  I  wonder  you  still 
cringe  to  the  Electress  as  you  do ;  she  will  be  your  ruin 
sooner  or  later.  I  should  send  her  to  the  devil  if  I  were 
in  your  place  ;  but  you  count  her  as  one  of  your  best 
friends.  She  has  told  you  so  many  untruths  that  she 
may  not  have  spoken  at  all  to  the  Elector  about  Prince 
Max,  and  I  firmly  believe  she  has  not  done  so. 

"If  you  had  followed  my  advice,  you  would  not  have 
given  any  explanation  at  all  to  La  Platen  about  your 
conduct.  You  would  have  answered  curtly,  'I  do  as  I 
please'  ;  and  it  would  have  been  better.  If  she  be  pleased 
with  me,  it  is  because  I  disapproved  of  my  sister's  conduct 
and  pretended  to  keep  in  with  her.  I  don't  disapprove 
of  your  making  up  your  quarrel  with  her,  but  I  hope  you 
will  be  wise  enough  not  to  tell  her  anything  that  might  do 
you  the  least  harm.  God  save  you  from  her.  You  must 
look  upon  her  as  one  of  your  greatest  enemies.  I  am  not 
in  the  least  surprised  she  spoke  to  you  of  me — she  is 
brazen  enough  for  anything.  I  should  like  to  have  seen 
you  together — a  haughty  mistress  like  her  with  so  timid 
a  child  as  you  !  I  am  surprised  you  saw  her  alone.  I 
defy  her  to  tell  you  the  least  thing  about  me  which  might 
shake  your  trust.  If  I  have  said  anything  pleasant  to  her, 
it  was  only  on  very  indifferent  matters,  and  at  a  time  when 
I  quarrelled  with  you.  Do  not  complain  about  my  temper, 
I  implore  you  ;  no  one  could  be  gentler  than  I  am,  and  I 
am  learning  to  be  patient.  You  know  I  hate  La  Platen 
with  a  deadly  hatred,  and  it  is  indifferent  to  me  whether 
she  comes  here  or  not.  I  am  too  much  occupied  in  think- 
ing of  you.  I  love  you,  I  adore  you  now  with  as  much 
ardour  as  I  have  ever  done.  Had  I  not  written  to  you, 
you  would  have  been  right  in  saying  that  I  don't  love  you, 
but  this  is  the  third  letter  I  have  written  on  the  march.  I 


3io   THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

could  not  do  more,  for  I  have  only  been  at  villages  where 
the  post  does  net  pass  near  by  leagues.  I  don't  in  the 
least  deserve  your  reproaches,  though  I  read  them  with 
.some  pleasure  ;  for  I  see  tenderness  mingled  with  the 
anger.  Ah !  if  you  loved  me  as  I  love  you,  how  happy 
I  should  be !  But,  ma  cherie,  our  last  evening  together 
was  not  all  that  I  would  have  wished.  I  could  not  write 
before  I  left  Hanover,  for  when  I  got  home  I  found  every- 
thing packed  up  and  ready  to  start,  and  I  was  in  such 
despair  I  jumped  on  my  horse  and  rode  out  of  the  town  as 
fast  as  I  could.  .  .  .  Farewell.  My  superior  officers  have 
arrived — Prince  Max  also." 

"  [Bv  THE  ELBE,]  August  l-. 

"  We  are  hard  pressed  here,  and  the  truce  is  broken  ;  it 
looks  as  though  we  shall  bang  away  at  one  another  to- 
morrow. Should  anything  happen  to  me  I  have  given 
orders  for  your  letters  and  portrait  (which  I  have  sealed  in 
a  packet)  to  be  burned.  1  want  to  die  less  than  ever,  for 
your  letter  gives  me  hope  and  courage,  it  is  so  tender 
and  unconstrained.  I  am  delighted  with  it  ;  it  makes  me 
happier  than  the  gods.  I  am  more  in  love  than  ever.  I 
have  plenty  of  time  to  think  of  my  passion,  for  I  am 
patrolling  day  and  night.  You  are  always  before  my  eyes  ; 
I  think  of  you  from  the  crown  of  your  head  to  the  tip  of 
your  toe.  I  reflect  I  am  the  only  possessor  of  the  jewel, 
which  fell  into  my  hands  in  so  marvellous  a  way,  and  count 
myself  the  happiest  man  in  the  world.  Should  I  die,  if  the 
good  God  has  decreed  my  death,  remember  I  die  your  true 
slave  and  faithful  lover ;  and  if  one  can  go  on  loving  in  the 
other  world,  I  vow  that  I  will  declare  myself  to  you,  and 
all  the  beauties  of  Paradise  will  never  lure  me  from  thee. 
Adieu." 

"  [Bv  THE  ELBE,]  August  —. 

"  My  letters  are  so  short  that  I  fear  you  may  be  angry  ; 
yet  it  is  not  through  negligence,  but  the  calls  of  duty.  We 
have  so  few  officers  that  I  cannot  get  a  moment's  peace. 
It  is  now  between  ten  and  eleven  o'clock  at  night,  and  at 
twelve  o'clock  we  go  on  guard,  which  lasts  till  morning. 
From  three  to  seven  I  sleep,  and  at  seven  Le  Felton  gives 


THE  CAMPAIGN  AGAINST  THE  DANES          311 

me  work  for  half  the  day.  Our  plans  here  change  every 
day !  I  cannot  tell  you  what  will  happen.  I  had  a  talk 
with  Buccow  about  many  things.  Among  other  things,  I 
said  your  mother  was  rapidly  wasting  away.  He  contra- 
dicted me  flatly,  and  swore  he  would  wager  three  thousand 
crowns  in  solid  silver  against  me.  If  he  be  right  you  will 
be  happy.  Buccow  told  me  that  when  you  were  at  Celle 
the  Duchess  bathed  on  the  ramparts  in  the  great  vats  that 
are  there.  Do  please  tell  me  if  this  is  true,  for  he  said  you 
did  the  same." 

While  negotiations  were  pending  between  the  King 
of  Denmark  and  the  princes  of  Brunswick-Luneburg,  the 
Danish  general  took  the  law  in  his  own  hands,  bombarded 
Ratzeburg,  and  destroyed  the  fortifications.  It  was  urged 
that  he  misunderstood  his  orders  and  acted  too  soon ;  but 
there  is  little  doubt  this  excuse  was  merely  a  diplomatic 
ruse  ;  and,  the  ostensible  casus  belli — the  fortifications  of 
Ratzeburg — having  been  removed,  the  King  of  Denmark 
signified  his  willingness  to  make  peace  on  his  own  terms. 
As  the  only  alternative  was  invasion,  which  they  were  ill 
prepared  to  resist  (and  which  later  happened  under  the 
Duke  of  Lauenburg),  the  Duke  of  Celle  and  his  brother 
had  to  put  the  best  face  they  could  on  the  matter,  and  the 
next  two  months  were  taken  up  in  negotiations  for  the 
treaty.  All  this  time  the  Hanoverian  army  was  compelled 
to  remain  by  the  Elbe,  and  Konigsmarck  with  it.  Fever 
broke  out  among  the  troops,  and  Marshal  Podevils,  the 
commander-in-chief,  was  seized  with  it,  and  had  to  be 
taken  to  Liineburg. 

The  Princess  meanwhile  had  left  Hanover  for  another 
visit  to  her  parents  at  Celle,  where  doubtless  she  renewed 
her  prayers  for  money.  She  could  not  have  chosen  a  worse 
time,  for  the  exchequer  of  Celle  was  very  low,  and  she  was 
met  with  stern  refusal.  This,  joined  to  the  desperate  state 
of  Konigsmarck's  affairs  and  the  general  hopelessness  of 
the  situation,  preyed  on  her  mind  so  much  that  she  became 
seriously  ill.  When  Konigsmarck  heard  the  news,  his  first 
thought  was  to  get  leave  and  go  to  her  at  Celle ;  but  on 
reflection  he  saw  the  thing  was  impossible,  as  his  presence 
was  required  at  the  camp.  All  this  is  made  plain  in  the 
following  letters  : — 


312    THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

,,  I-T-  f\  -,    August  27 

"[FROM  THE  CAMP,]  ?  x °    ,    '-,. 
IJ  September  6 

"  At  this  very  moment  Biilow  is  crossing  the  Elbe  with 
the  news  that  Ratzeburg  is  bombarded  ;  it  is  in  ashes. 
His  mission  is  to  testify  to  their  Highnesses  that  General 
Vaidel  has  bombarded  the  place  a  day  sooner  than  he 
ought  to  have  done,  for  the  King  gave  him  orders  to  wait 
till  Monday,  meaning  all  day  Monday  ;  but  Vaidel,  too 
delighted  to  open  fire,  began  on  Monday  at  six  o'clock  in 
the  morning,  and  at  noon  the  town  was  all  in  flames. 
When  the  King  heard  of  it,  he  ran  to  cry  a  halt,  for  he 
had  promised  to  do  nothing  before  Wednesday.  I  let  you 
know  this  because  the  King  is  sending  a  message  by  Biilow 
to  express  his  regret  and  to  make  an  offer  of  peace,1  on  the 
basis  of  the  last  terms  proposed  on  his  side.  So  it  now 
depends  upon  our  masters  whether  there  shall  be  peace  or 
war.  In  the  latter  event  I  shall  not  see  you  for  a  long 
time,  and  you  may  be  obliged  to  flee  for  safety  to  Berlin  or 
Amsterdam." 

"[FROM  THE  CAMP.]  I"*™*  28-. 
J  September  7 

"  Danger  is  over  for  the  present ;  and  I  do  not  exert 
myself  much,  for  there  is  no  longer  any  prospect  of  advance- 
ment for  me.  So  it  seems  you  will  probably  see  your 
lover  safe  and  sound,  unless  the  sickness  all  about  should 
catch  him.  Do  not  therefore  be  any  longer  uneasy  about 
me.  The  courier  who  went  to  Flanders  was  only  sent  to 
make  the  thing  look  more  important.  I  firmly  believe 
that  they  will  not  make  the  troops  come  back,  for  they  are 
really  talking  about  patching  up  this  affair  :  rather  a  difficult 
task,  but  our  side  must  make  a  virtue  of  necessity.  That 
is  how  things  stand. 

"  Your  assurances  of  tenderness  fill  me  with  rapture  ; 
you  say  you  would  love  me  without  arms  or  legs.  Surely 
you  wish  me  to  give  up  the  ghost  altogether  for  very  joy. 
You  are  my  idol ;  I  worship  you,  and  my  love  will  only 
end  with  my  life.  I  am  passionate,  tender,  faithful ;  my 
only  joy  is  to  think  of  your  lovely  eyes  and  the  fire  which 

1  Here  we  have  another  proof  of  the  authenticity  of  the  letters. 
Konigsmarck's  account  of  the  sending  of  the  Danish  Commissioner  Biilow 
is  in  complete  agreement  with  that  given  by  the  Electress  Sophia  in  her 
letters  now  preserved  in  the  Prussian  National  Archives.  The  sending  of 
Biilow  is  mentioned  nowhere  else. 


THE  CAMPAIGN  AGAINST  THE  DANES          313 

darts  from  them — that  sweet  fire  which  burns  my  heart. 
But  I  cannot  understand  why  you  went  to  see  La  Platen 
before  you  left  Hanover  ;  for  three  years  you  have  not 
been  near  her,  and  now  you  begin.  I  know  you  are  very 
timid,  but  why  should  you  go  to  see  her  ?  Sometimes  we 
must  worship  the  devil  lest  he  should  harm  us." 

"[FROM  THE  CAMP,]  August  29. 

"  I  can  see  from  your  letter  that  you  are  ailing,  for  I 
found  in  it  nothing  to  move  me.  I  won't  scold  you,  for  I 
want  to  know  if  you  are  really  very  ill.  Don't  alarm  me 
if  it  be  not  so,  and  I  implore  you,  don't  eat  fruit, — there  is 
nothing  so  bad  for  one ;  lots  of  people  fall  ill  through  that. 
Dysentery  is  raging  everywhere.  Dien  !  if  such  a  mis- 
fortune were  to  fall  on  me,  I  couldn't  bear  it.  I  am  raging 
to  know  how  you  are.  I  wanted  to  leave  my  post  and  go 
to  Celle ;  but  then  it  would  all  have  burst,  and  we  should 
be  ruined  in  reputation.  Alas !  poor  lover !  do  you  con- 
sider your  reputation  when  your  beautiful  one  is  ill  ?  No, 
no !  let  me  risk  everything.  If  I  do  not  hear  to-morrow 
evening  that  you  are  better,  expect  me.  I  will  fly  to  your 
side,  and  won't  budge  an  inch  until  you  are  well.  I  beg 
your  pardon,  my  beautiful  one,  for  all  I  have  ever  said 
to  wound  you.  Do  not  refuse  forgiveness,  I  entreat  you  ; 
take  care  of  your  health,  my  life  ;  rest,  and  spare  yourself. 
What  shall  I  do  if  a  great  sickness  seize  you  ?  I  shudder 
when  I  think  of  it,  and  death  looms  before  my  eyes.  If  I 
could  only  be  at  the  foot  of  your  bed  to  take  care  of  you, 
it  would  comfort  me  a  little !  But  how  can  I  manage  it  ? 
Perhaps  I  should  not  see  you  at  all,  for  you  will  be  sur- 
rounded by  your  women  if  it  be  true  you  are  really  ill. 
Marshal  Podevils  has  been  carried  off  to  Liineburg,  and 
that  gives  me  more  work  ;  for  though  Bocage  has  the  left 
wing,  I  have  so  much  to  do  on  the  right  wing  that  I  haven't 
a  moment  to  myself.  I  shall  be  glad  to  end  this  campaign 
without  having  anything  to  reproach  myself  with.  Adieu. 
May  the  angels  preserve  you  !  " 

Konigsmarck  to  Frdulein  von  Knesebeck. 

"  You  distress  me  by  not  giving  me  better  news.  Tell 
Her  Highness  not  to  trouble  about  writing  to  me.  I 


3H   THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

absolutely  refuse  to  allow  her  to  write  while  she  suffers  so. 
How  joyfully  I  would  go  to  comfort  her  were  it  not  for 
Marshal  Podevil's  illness  !  Besides,  the  truce  ends  to-day, 
and  I  have  received  orders  to  be  on  guard.  You  can 
imagine  how  that  news  grieves  me.  I  am  rewarded  by  the 
Duke  of  Celle,  but  not  by  the  Elector,  so  I  am  raging.  I 
vow,  on  my  damnation,  that  were  it  not  for  my  dearest  love 
I  would  quit  the  Hanoverian  service  directly  this  business 
is  over.  I  will  write  of  this  more  to-morrow.  I  received 
Leonnisse's  sweet  messages  with  joy.  I  pray  God  soon  to 
give  her  better  health.  Embrace  her  tenderly  from  me." 


Konigsmarck  to  the  Princess. 

"  ALTEMBURG,  September  — . 
29 

"  The  joy  I  feel  at  knowing  that  you  are  out  of  danger 
is  very  great,  and  I  pray  Heaven  you  will  soon  lose  your 
weakness.  If  it  will  only  go  away,  I  shall  not  mind  if  it 
leave  you  pale  and  thin  and  reduced  to  a  shadow.  My 
only  wish  is  that  you  suffer  no  longer.  I  should  be  unhappy 
indeed  were  my  love  only  inspired  by  your  beauty,  for  in 
twenty-four  hours,  nay,  even  less,  your  loveliness  might 
change  to  ugliness,  and  then  where  should  I  be  ?  My  love 
is  founded  on  more  solid  qualities,  and  it  will  never  change 
even  when  you  are  eighty  years  old.  The  beauty  of  person 
is  but  a  passing  thing,  but  the  beauty  of  merit  lasts  for  eter- 
nity. I  am  not  a  man  to  be  in  love  with  mere  beauty  ;  it 
often  dazzles  me,  but  never  blinds  me,  for  I  have  frequently 
noticed  that  where  beauty  is  so  great  merit  is  very  little. 
I  vow  to  you  still  that  I  do  not  know  when  my  love  for  you 
has  made  me  easy  for  even  a  quarter  of  an  hour  ;  even  now 
scarcely  a  night  goes  by  but  I  sit  up  half  the  time  fearing 
this  and  fearing  that.  I  sometimes  think  if  I  had  done 
right  I  should  never  have  paid  you  my  court,  for  I  ought  to 
have  thought  about  the  future  and  all  the  consequences  that 
would  follow  upon  our  love.  But  then,  /  knew  you,  and  I 
gave  myself  up  to  you.  I  could  not  listen  to  reason,  but 
only  to  my  heart.  Too  late  I  see  all  the  obstacles  in  the 
way  of  our  happiness,  and  I  know  you  see  them  too.  You 
have  more  to  lose  than  I  have,  in  the  rank  you  are  ;  but 
we  cannot  alter  that,  so,  ma  cherie,  let  us  have  pity  on  each 


THE  CAMPAIGN  AGAINST  THE  DANES          315 

other  and  hate  the  fate  which  makes  us  so  unhappy.  Do 
not  think  that  I  shall  ever  repent  having  devoted  myself  to 
you.  No,  no  !  my  divine  Leonnisse  ;  had  I  to  begin  all 
over  again  I  should  do  the  same  thing.  My  passion  carries 
me  away.  I  cannot  write  so  coldly  as  you  did  for  four  whole 
pages,  but  no  doubt  your  weakness  made  your  love  seem 
weak.  I  will  say  what  my  true  and  sound  heart  dictates. 
In  spite  of  all  obstacles  if  only  you  will  not  waver,  I  will 
show  you  a  constancy  that  will  last  till  death.  Ah  !  my 
dear,  my  dear !  true  heart  wounds  are  incurable.  All  joy, 
all  danger,  make  no  difference.  They  only  bring  home  to 
me  that  nothing  is  dearer  than  the  love  I  bear  for  you  ;  and 
the  more  dangers,  the  more  difficulties  there  are  to  be  over- 
come, the  greater  will  be  the  victory.  The  conquest  of  the 
whole  world  is  nothing  to  me  compared  with  the  conquest  of 
your  heart.  When  the  time  comes  for  us  to  be  together 
always,  we  will  sing,  '  How  delightful  is  this  place  !  Let  us 
taste  its  delights."  But  when  will  that  happy  hour  dawn  ? 
I  am  waiting  for  it  with  intense  impatience.  It  is  '  better 
late  than  never,' — a  detestable  proverb  for  loving  hearts,  but 
what  would  you  ? 

"  As  the  Prince  has  desired  you  to  return  to  Hanover 
soon,  it  is  no  use  your  thinking  of  going  to  Epsdorff,  or 
Gohre,  but  go  straight  to  Hanover.  I  shall  not  be  done 
here  this  month,  and  the  month  of  November  will  bring 
back  all  our  warriors,  and  as  the  Prince  is  one  of  them 
we  must  take  advantage  of  the  precious  time.  If  it  be  true 
that  you  have  such  an  aversion  to  the  Prince,  I  pity  you, 
for  you  will  suffer  even  more  than  I  do,  and  that  is  not  a 
little.  .  .  .  The  Prince  is  one  of  those  monsters  who  sought 
to  devour  the  unhappy  Andromeda.  Would  to  Heaven  I 
were  Perseus  to  free  you  from  him  ;  but,  alas  !  what  can  a 
mortal  man  do  ?  ...  I  am  all  yours,  heart,  soul,  and  body. 
Ah !  if  I  could  but  kiss  that  little  mouth  whose  sweetness  I 
have  so  often  tasted.  My  blood  riots  when  I  think  of  it. 
For  eight  weeks  I  have  been  keeping  Lent.  I  have  not 
shaved  since  I  left  Hanover,  I  have  been  living  like  a  monk, 
fasting  on  Sundays  and  not  missing  a  sermon,  and  all  for 
the  sake  of  the  sweetest  little  woman  in  the  world,  whom  I 
love  more  than  my  two  eyes — so  tenderly  that  I  cannot 
find  words  to  express  my  feelings.  My  only  joy  is  in 
gazing  on  and  kissing  your  portrait  as  I  lie  on  my  bed, 


3i6   THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

without  taking  my  eyes  and  lips  off  it  for  two  hours  at 
a  stretch.  In  those  moments  I  must  own  that  I  am 
not  a  monk,  for  my  passion  carries  me  away.  Adieu, 
adieu." 


When  the  Princess  had  recovered  from  her  illness  she 
was  sent  back  to  Hanover,  and  her  mother  went  with  her. 
The  Electoral  Prince,  George  Louis,  had  now  returned  from 
the  campaign  in  Flanders,  and  the  Elector  of  Hanover  and 
the  Duke  of  Celle  agreed  that  it  would  be  better  for  him  in 
the  future  to  remain  at  home  and  see  more  of  his  wife  and 
children.  Even  the  Duchess  of  Celle  urged  her  daughter 
to  attach  herself  more  to  her  husband.  The  affairs  of  the 
House  of  Brunswick-Liineburg  were  not  at  their  brightest  ; 
the  trouble  with  the  Danes  was  a  heavy  blow,  and  the 
campaign  this  year  in  Flanders  had  been  attended  with 
disaster  all  along  the  line.  The  French  had  captured 
Ghent,  won  the  battles  of  Linden  and  Neerwinden,  and 
besieged  and  taken  Charleroy.  The  star  of  William  and 
the  Allies  was  certainly  not  in  the  ascendant,  and  the 
general  depression  made  itself  felt  at  Hanover  and  Celle. 
Under  these  circumstances  it  was  all  the  more  necessary 
for  the  families  to  pull  together  and  show  no  disunion. 
The  Princess  was  therefore  bidden  to  return  to  Hanover  and 
her  wifely  duty,  and  make  the  best  she  could  of  her  lot 
— advice  which  could  hardly  have  been  more  unpalatable. 
Her  dismay  was  shared  by  Konigsmarck,  who,  on  receipt 
of  the  news,  endeavoured  to  obtain  leave  from  the  camp 
and  set  out  for  Celle,  where  the  Princess  was.  She  had 
been  delaying  her  departure  on  the  pretext  that  she  was 
not  yet  well  enough  to  travel.  Of  Konigsmarck's  letters 
at  this  time  I  give  the  following : — 

"  [FROM  THE  CAMP,]  October  i. 

"  Oh,  cruel  destiny !  oh,  endless  misfortune !  why  wilt 
thou  always  distress  me  ?  Scarcely  did  I  see  the  sun's  rays 
than  a  cloud  robbed  them  from  my  eyes.  Only  this  fatal 
blow  was  needed.  What !  I  may  not  even  taste  three  or 
four  days  of  bliss  with  you  ?  Oh,  my  dear  one  !  I  ought  to 
have  worshipped  you  from  afar,  not  loved  you  ;  Heaven 
punishes  me  for  my  audacity.  You  are  happier  than  I,  for 


THE  CAMPAIGN  AGAINST  THE  DANES          317 

you  hope  your  mother  will  find  a  way  out  of  your  troubles  ; 
but  I  have  no  hope,  and  greatly  fear  your  plans  will  not 
succeed.  Alas  !  where  am  I  to  look  for  consolation  ?  My 
charming  divinity,  let  me  bury  myself  in  some  lonely  corner 
of  the  world,  far  away  from  the  light,  since  all  hope  of 
passing  my  life  with  you  is  lost.  I  pity  you,  my  angel  ; 
yet  I  suffer  more,  for  I  am  the  cause  of  your  pain  and 
sorrow.  Take  care  that  the  Prince  does  not  find  any 
coldness  in  you,  though  that  advice  is  greatly  against  my 
inclination.  You  must  guard  yourself  against  the  danger 
that  threatens  you.  I  therefore  advise  you  to  cajole  and 
flatter  the  man  I  wish  you  to  hate ;  you  must  coax  him 
without  fail.  The  tears  you  are  shedding  are  tears  of  blood 
to  me.  But  for  me  you  would  be  the  happiest  woman  in 
the  world  ;  yet  remember,  I  suffer  no  less  than  you.  I 
thought  by  devoting  myself  wholly  to  you  that  I  should 
be  the  happiest  of  men  ;  but  destiny  has  thwarted  us.  I 
have  forsaken  relatives,  friends,  countrymen,  estates,  and 
wealth  to  have  the  joy  of  sometime  tasting  peacefully  the 
delights  of  our  mutual  love  ;  but,  alas !  I  have  lost  all  with- 
out gaining  my  desire. 

"  A  certain  friend  of  our  court  told  me  that  they  think 
the  treaty  will  soon  be  signed,  but  the  Danes  make  so 
many  quibbles  that  it  is  postponed  from  day  to  day.  We 
shall  still  be  here  ten  or  twelve  days,  so  the  Prince  will 
see  you  before  me,  and  this  cuts  me  to  the  heart.  Count 
Platen's  son  came  to  see  me  yesterday,  and  brought  me  a 
letter  from  his  mother,  who  is  reckoned  great  among  us 
here  ;  I  enclose  it  to  you,  so  that  I  may  have  nothing  to 
reproach  myself  with.  My  answer  was  only  six  lines,  and 
as  cavalier  as  courtesy  permitted.  When  I  have  the  happi- 
ness of  seeing  you,  I  will  repeat  it  word  for  word.  The 
young  Count  told  me  that  the  peace  would  be  signed  for 
certain  on  Tuesday,  but  as  that  is  too  long  for  me  to  wait 
I  must  try  to  find  some  other  means  of  seeing  you  at  Celle 
before  you  go  to  Hanover.  I  don't  know  if  I  can  manage 
it,  but  I  shall  know  to-morrow.  .  .  . 

"  L* envoi. — I  am  writing  to  ask  Marshal  Podevils  to  give 
me  leave  for  three  days.  I  shall  be  at  Celle  before  you  go 
;iway.  Directly  I  know  I  will  start  at  once.  I  will  come 
disguised.  Wait  for  me  on  the  small  staircase  two  nights 
running  until  twelve  o'clock.  I  know  the  way  to  the  hidden 


318   THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

staircase  at  the  back,  and  will  wait  for  the  signal  if  I  reach 
there  safely.     Adieu." 

Whether  Konigsmarck  saw  the  Princess  at  Celle  or 
not  it  is  impossible  to  say.  But  this  much  is  certain — he 
returned. to  Hanover  from  the  campaign  late  in  October, 
some  weeks  after  the  Princess's  arrival  there.  The  follow- 
ing letters  (which  bring  this  correspondence  to  an  end) 
were  all  written  between  then  and  the  close  of  the  year. 
The  first  is  the  most  interesting,  for  it  shows  that  the 
Princess  had  qualms  of  conscience  about  the  double  life 
she  was  leading,  though  she  had  not  the  strength  to  break 
from  it.  Her  desire  was  to  flee  with  Konigsmarck  to  some 
far-off  land,  obtain  a  divorce  from  her  husband,  marry  her 
lover,  and  live  in  what  Count  Schulenburg-Klosterrode 
quaintly  calls  "an  honourable  married  state".  In  other 
words,  she  wished  paradoxically  to  get  rid  of  the  temp- 
tation by  yielding  to  it.  Konigsmarck,  on  his  part,  was 
not  backward  in  sophistries  ;  he  reminded  her  that  their 
thoughts  had  always  been  directed  towards  matrimony, 
and,  once  united  to  the  Princess,  he  vowed  to  lead  a  sober 
and  cleanly  life.  Whether  these  good  intentions  would 
have  been  carried  out  it  boots  not  to  speculate  ;  but  one 
thing  was  now  certain,  Konigsmarck  could  not  remain  in 
the  service  of  the  Elector  of  Hanover.  He  was  still  received 
at  court,  but  every  movement  was  watched.  His  stolen 
meetings  with  the  Princess  were  few  and  far  between  and 
attended  with  great  risk.  Often  their  appointments  were 
not  able  to  be  kept,  while  the  fact  of  a  letter  having  gone 
astray  or  a  signal  misunderstood  was  sufficient  to  ttirow 
them  both  into  a  fever  of  agitation.  Yet  he  was  still  so 
unreasonable  that,  if  the  Princess  treated  him  in  public 
with  necessary  reserve,  he  reproached  her  passionately  in 
private.  Marshal  Podevils  warned  him  again,  the  Duchess 
of  Celle  warned  her  daughter,  and  the  coldness  of  the 
Elector  and  Electress  and  the  gossip  of  the  whole  court 
must  have  been  surely  more  than  sufficient  to  point  out  the 
extreme  danger  of  the  path  the  lovers  were  treading.  Yet 
they  rushed  on,  not  blindly,  but  with  their  eyes  wide 
open,  to  the  very  edge  of  the  precipice.  Thus  ended  the 
year. 


THE  CAMPAIGN  AGAINST  THB:  DANES          3!9 
K'onigsmarck  to  the  Princess. 

"  [HANOVER,]  Thursday  morning. 

"  If  your  father  be  ruined  you  will  have  nothing  left  to 
hope  for,  but  I  believe  the  demands  of  the  Danish  envoys 
will  not  be  so  exorbitant  as  all  that.  You  think  that  I  no 
longer  wish  to  see  you  ;  you  must  know  I  wish  it  more 
than  ever,  and  it  will  not  be  good  for  us  to  be  kept  apart 
much  longer — for  many  reasons,  the  chief  being  that  should 
the  Danes  come  into  the  country — God  preserve  us  ! — they 
might  open  all  letters,  and  ours  also.  To  avoid  that  possi- 
bility we  should  have  to  break  off  all  communication,  and 
without  being  able  to  see  or  write  to  you  my  life  would 
not  be  worth  living.  So  you  think  your  love  for  me  is  a 
great  sin,  and  you  believe  God  punishes  you  for  it.  Great 
heavens !  what  a  thought !  Do  not  get  such  an  idea  in 
your  head,  for  that  kind  of  folly  might  lead  you  far  from 
me.  You  know  that  our  resolves,  our  inclinations,  our 
wishes  are  in  harmony  with  the  divine  laws,  and  it  only 
depends  on  Him  above  to  take  us  away  from  the  life  we 
lead.  I  vow  to  Him  after  that  I  will  sin  no  more  against 
the  sixth  commandment,  and  I  will  lead  a  pious  life,  free 
from  reproach.  Make  Him  also  the  same  vows — perhaps 
He  will  hear  our  prayers.  I  am  longing  for  that  happy 
consummation,  and  with  what  joy  I  will  repent  of  my  sins  ! 
Your  caresses,  your  love,  your  very  presence  will  be  all- 
sufficient  to  me." 

"  [HANOVER,]  Tuesday,  Two  o'clock  after  midnight. 

"  Your  conduct  is  not  very  kind.  You  appoint  a 
rendezvous,  and  then  leave  me  to  freeze  to  death  in  the 
cold,  waiting  for  the  signal.  You  must  have  known  that  I 
was  there  from  11.30  till  i,  waiting  in  the  street.  I  know 
not  what  to  think,  but  I  can  hardly  doubt  your  inconstancy 
after  having  such  icy  proofs  of  it.  You  did  not  deign  to 
look  at  me  all  the  evening,  you  purposely  avoided  playing 
cards  with  me,  and  you  wanted  to  get  rid  of  me.  I  will 
go  away  quickly  enough.  Farewell,  then.  I  start  to- 
morrow morning  for  Hamburg. 

"  [The  next  morning.] 

"  Having  spent  the  whole  night  without  sleeping,  I  have 
had  time  to  think  over  my  troubles.  I  determined  to  go, 


320   THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

but  then  I  remembered  I  once  swore  to  you  that  I  would 
never  go  away  abruptly,  and  I  want  to  know  before  I  go 
the  reason  of  your  behaviour.  That  is  why  I  am  still  here 
to-day.  I  shall  not  appear  at  court,  for  I  mortally  hate  it, 
and  so  you  will  not  be  able  to  give  me  the  signal  with  your 
eyes  ;  but  the  other  way  will  let  me  know  if  I  may  come  in. 
I  am  glad  I  did  not  continue  my  letter  last  night,  for  I  was 
in  so  violent  a  rage  that  I  should  certainly  have  said  some 
unpleasant  things  for  which  I  should  now  be  sorry." 

"  [HANOVER,  undated.] 

"  I  was  sure  that  you  would  be  dissatisfied  with  me 
because  I  did  not  keep  my  appointment.  I  don't  know 
if  you  think  my  reason  a  good  one,  but  it  was  a  very  real 
one.  .  .  -1  But,  I  say,  why  did  you  let  me  wait  the  day 
before  yesterday  two  hours  in  the  street  ?  and  why  do  you 
not  excuse  yourself?  Do  you  think  I  am  not  hurt  by  such 
treatment.  Read  my  first  letter,  you  will  see  the  reasons 
why  I  thought  you  ought  to  have  let  me  know.  I  did  not 
cry  out  about  it,  but  that  did  not  prevent  me  being  very 
much  piqued.  Your  letter  of  yesterday  charmed  me  :  I 
will  make  a  play  of  it,  for,  besides  the  wit,  it  is  filled  with 
natural  and  convincing  tenderness.  I  can  see  it  is  my 
charming  princess,  my  Sophie,  who  wrote  it — adorable 
angel  !  I  shed  tears  in  reading  your  letter.  Your  lovely 
eyes  have  been  bathed  in  tears,  and  I  am  the  cause ! 
Konigsmarck,  thou  dost  not  deserve  to  possess  Sophie's 
loving  heart." 

"[HANOVER,]  Tuesday. 

"  My  anxiety  will  not  let  me  sleep.  I  go  over  every- 
thing in  my  mind,  even  my  childhood  ;  but  I  cannot  find 
the  letter  I  had  from  you  last  night  nor  remember  where  I 
put  it.  I  burned  one  yesterday, — it  might  have  been  yours 
by  mistake.  Unfortunately  the  missing  letter  is  the  one  in 
which  you  notified  when  and  where  I  might  see  you.  It 
was  the  last  I  had  from  you.  I  remember  it  well  ;  I  had 
it  from  La  Confidente  on  Sunday  morning,  for  yesterday 
morning  she  had  one  from  me ;  but  she  did  not  write  back, 

1  He  was  ill,  but  there  is  no  need  to  quote  his  detailed  description  of  his 
illness. 


THE  CAMPAIGN  AGAINST  THE  DANES          321 

and  that  worries  me.  I  did  not  find  anything  in  my  hat 
last  night.  You  remember  that  you  asked  me  what  I  was 
looking  for  I  answered  :  '  My  hat  ;  some  one  has  stolen 
my  gloves  '.  You  replied  :  '  No  doubt,  for  Count  Home, 
or  Oxensterne,  I  don't  remember  which  one  it  was,  had  a 
fringed  pair  of  gloves  stolen  '.  You  see,  I  remember  trifles. 
Do  not  imagine,  then,  I  could  have  forgotten  such  a  thing 
as  an  appointment  with  you.  Would  to  Heaven  I  had 
forgotten,  for  I  fear  our  carelessness  will  be  our  ruin.  I 
swear  to  you  that  I  looked  in  my  hat,  and,  as  to  my  gloves, 
I  put  them  on,  but  there  was  nothing  in  them.  I  was  angry 
with  La  Confidente,  for  she  had  given  me  the  signal  and 
yet  I  found  nothing  [in  my  hat].  I  thought  she  had  not 
had  an  opportunity.  But  I  was  much  surprised  on  leaving 
the  room  to  find  nothing,  for  La  Confidente  had  given  me 
the  signal  a  second  time.  I  wanted  to  speak  to  her  about 
it,  but  Prince  Ernest  followed  me  so  closely,  and  Stutenfrich 
was  next  to  me  on  the  other  side,  that  I  could  not  do  so. 
You  will  see  from  my  letter  of  last  night  that  I  made  no 
mistake  ;  it  was  written  as  soon  as  I  got  home.  If  I  had 
one  from  you  I  should  not  have  forgotten  it  in  three  hours' 
time,  despite  my  poor  memory.  Dieti  ait  pitie  de  nous,  car 
sans  son  secours  je  ne  sais  comment  nous  sortirons  de  cette 
affaire.  I  take  Him  as  witness  that  I  fear  not  the  peril  I 
run.  But  to  lose  you  for  ever,  that  is  what  distresses  me  ! 

"  If  I  wished  to  go  away  from  you,  it  was  because  I 
might  be  able  to  help  you  better  at  a  distance  than  if  I 
were  near.  They  might  imprison  me  perhaps,  but  that  is 
a  ridiculous  thought ;  I  will  not  dream  of  it.  I  was  admir- 
ing you  last  evening,  watching  you  laughing  before  that 
mirror  in  so  merry  a  mood  ;  yet  all  the  time  I  was  trem- 
bling, for  I  thought  that  the  Elector  and  your  mother  were 
already  talking  about  that  letter,  and  were  planning  how 
to  punish  us.  Your  cheerfulness  makes  me  suspect  many 
things  :  sometimes  I  think  you  will  not  see  me  for  a  long 
time  and  little  by  little  detach  yourself  from  me.  Other 
thoughts  come  into  my  head  whereof  I  will  not  write  to 
you.  I  am  so  troubled  because  of  that  accident  that  my 
brain  is  in  a  whirl.  To  crown  it  all,  Madame  Goritz  has 
told  me  that  she  knows  I  hid  incognito  three  days  in  the 
town  without  showing  myself,  and  the  people  I  employed 
in  my  intrigue^ had  betrayed  me,  and  a  dozen  things  beside  ; 

21 


322    THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

it  would  take  too  long  to  write  it  all.  This,  added  to  the 
loss  of  your  note,  makes  me  beside  myself.  If  among  all 
my  sorrows  I  had  not  the  one  of  fearing  that  you  might 
weary  of  me,  I  should  console  myself  in  spite  of  every- 
thing, but  that  thought  finishes  me.  Should  they  begin 
to  question  La  Confidente  as  to  whether  I  have  written 
to  her  sometimes,  she  must  say  at  once  that  I  wrote  to 
her  several  times  from  Flanders,  but  not  from  here.  My 
brother-in-law  [Count  Lewenhaupt]  must  be  apprised  of 
the  same  thing,  so  that  we  may  not  betray  ourselves.  It  is 
necessary  my  brother-in-law  should  know  what  to  answer 
in  case  he  should  be  questioned,  and  know  to  whom  the 
letters  were  addressed  which  my  lacquey  brought  him. 
I  shall  say  that  when  I  went  away  I  asked  him  to  give  the 
letters  addressed  to  the  '  Frole  Crunbuglen  '  to  a  woman 
who  would  ask  for  them  under  that  name,  and  he  sent  on 
to  me  the  answers  the  woman  brought,  without  asking 
from  whom  the  letters  came.  He  must  say  neither  more 
nor  less.  If  I  do  not  make  my  meaning  clear,  I  must  have 
a  word  with  you,  for  it  is  wise  to  take  precautions  in  time, 
lest  we  be  discovered.  You  must  deny  ever  having  written 
to  me  at  all,  but  La  Confidente  must  not  deny  that  I  have 
spoken  about  you,  in  case  they  ask  what  I  have  written  to  her." 

"  [HANOVER,  undated.] 

"  What  will  you  say,  Madame,  when  you  learn  that  they 
did  not  let  me  go  through  the  day  without  the  misfortune 
I  dreaded  ?  Marshal  Podevils  was  the  first  to  tell  me  to 
beware  of  my  conduct,  because  he  knew  on  good  authority 
that  I  was  watched.  I  pressed  him  to  give  me  more 
particulars,  saying  I  did  not  understand  what  he  meant ; 
but  he  would  tell  me  nothing  except  that  it  was  concerning 
a  lady  of  the  court,  and  you  can  see  to  whom  he  refers. 
I  was  not  satisfied,  and  implored  him  to  tell  me  more 
positively  in  what  way  my  conduct  was  wrong.  He  said 
he  would  do  so  to-morrow  on  condition  I  promised  not  to 
speak  to  any  one  about  it.  Prince  Ernest  has  told  me  the 
same  thing ;  and  he  is  not  quite  as  guarded  as  the  other, 
for  he  admitted  that  the  conversations  I  had  from  time  to 
time  with  you  might  draw  upon  me  very  unpleasant  and 
serious  consequences.  I  could  not  wait  any  longer  in  the 
antechamber  for  fear  of  breaking  down  after  hearing  such 


THE  CAMPAIGN  AGAINST  THE  DANES          323 

news.  Were  you  to  see  the  state  I  am  in  you  would  pity 
me ;  my  eyes,  from  which  a  torrent  of  tears  has  flowed, 
would  show  you  how  my  heart  is  aching.  O  God  !  where 
am  I  to  find  a  shelter  to  end  my  misery  ?  O  cruel  Fate ! 
scarcely  hast  thou  let  me  taste  the  delights  of  love  than 
thou  plungest  me  into  the  most  pitiable  state  ever  known  ! 
From  what  I  could  gather  from  Prince  Ernest,  all  that  he 
knows  is  through  Le  Barbouilleur,  and  he,  no  doubt,  will 
speak  to  me  about  it,  but  up  to  now  he  has  avoided  me. 
I  shall  know  to-morrow  :  perhaps  I  shall  suffer  arrest  and 
death.  .  .  .  Nothing  has  touched  me  to  the  quick  so  much 
as  to  find  that  our  affair  is  in  every  one's  mouth.  I 
wouldn't  mind  the  Electress  of  Brandenburg's  knowing  it, 
if  only  half  the  court  did  not  know  it  too.  When  am  I  to 
see  you  ?  When  shall  I  gaze  into  those  beautiful  eyes  ? 
When  will  they  beam  on  me  and  declare  the  joy  it  gives 
you  to  rest  in  my  arms  ? " 

"  [HANOVER],  Tuesday  evening,  5  o'clock. 

"  I  do  not  know  if  I  am  to  attribute  the  sadness  in  your 
eyes  to  your  pious  scruples  or  to  the  thought  of  our  ap- 
proaching separation.  I  flattered  myself  it  was  the  latter 
during  the  game ;  but  at  supper  the  sad  look  vanished  and 
you  were  as  cheerful  as  ever.  Perhaps  your  partner's  con- 
versation had  something  to  do  with  it,  for  he  seemed  to  put 
you  in  good  temper  in  a  moment.  But  I  may  do  you 
wrong  ;  and  you  restrained  yourself  because  no  one  should 
notice  your  grief;  in  that  case  I  forgive  you.  I  wanted  to 
ask  you  yesterday  to  let  me  affect  a  cheerful  look,  but  I 
could  not  do  so.  I  beg  you,  don't  let  La  .Confidente  make 
me  signs  when  she  has  nothing  to  give  me,  or  when  she 
does  not  want  to  speak  to  me.  I  was  anxious  about  her 
signals  all  night. 

"  I  needed  your  letter  to  deliver  me  from  profound  grief. 
Everything  depends  on  to-morrow's  news.  I  feel  like  a 
criminal  under  sentence  of  death,  who  is  to  be  executed 
on  the  morrow.  Death  would  not  grieve  me  more  than 
separation  from  you.  I  am  more  than  grateful  for  your 
consent  to  see  me  ;  but  I  know  that  interview  will  break  my 
heart,  for  you  are  leaving  me  to  go  amid  many  pleasures, 
in  the  midst  of  court  society,  and  surrounded  by  no  end  of 
handsome  gallants.  The  Electress  of  Brandenburg  will  put 

21  * 


324   THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

opportunities  in  your  way  and  you  will  not  be  able  to  avoid 
them.1 

"  Until  now  I  have  always  thought  my  passion  was  the 
cause  of  our  differences,  and  I  have  blamed  myself  for  acting 
in  so  jealous  a  manner  ;  but,  Madame,  the  quarrel  we  had 
yesterday  evening  shows  me  clearly  you  cannot  live  without 
quarrelling.  From  the  most  innocent  thing  in  the  world 
you  magnify  the  greatest  fault  imaginable.  When  I  am 
in  the  wrong  and  offend  you,  why  are  you  not  reasonable 
enough  to  say :  '  I  will  not  have  you  speaking  to  me  in  that 
way,  and  if  it  occur  again  we  shall  fall  out '.  I  should  then 
take  care  not  to  commit  the  same  fault  again.  But  no,  you 
are  always  picking  a  quarrel  with  me.  You  know  such 
ways  distress  me,  and,  added  to  the  wicked  affronts  I  suffer 
every  day  from  all  sides,  they  crush  me  so  that  I  do  not 
know  what  keeps  me  from  taking  my  leave.  I  shall  certainly 
do  so  to-morrow,  for  it  is  evident  you  wish  to  make  my  life 
unbearable.  Le  Barbouilleur  found  a  good  deal  of  fault 
with  you  for  talking  so  much  to  that  violinist.2  Of  course 
it  was  not  seemly  for  a  lady  of  your  rank  ;  but  I  am  no 
longer  in  the  state  of  mind  to  tell  you  what  is  seemly  and 
what  is  not.  I  must  think  about  beating  a  retreat,  for  the 
way  you  treat  me  is  beyond  bearing ;  I  would  rather  lose 
my  sight  than  be  treated  so.  For  mercy's  sake,  cannot  you 
alter  your  ways  for  the  sake  of  a  lover  who  adores  you 
tenderly?  Think  of  all  the  trouble  you  have  caused  me,, 
of  all  the  risks  I  run,  and  if  there  be  the  least  spark  of  love 
left  in  you,  you  will  not  let  a  heart  perish  on  which  your 
image  is  for  ever  graven." 

"  [HANOVER,  undated.] 

"  I  am  joyful  to  hear  of  your  return  (from  Lutzenburg), 
and  as  my  sickness  is  ended,  if  you  will  allow  me  to  come 
to  you  and  kiss  your  knees  and  ask  your  pardon  for  all  my 
suspicions,  I  shall  be  overjoyed.  1  am  punished  enough 
for  them,  God  knows ;  for  I  have  been  sick  unto  death  with 
grief  and  rage,  and  I  had  no  news  of  you.  I  will  see  you 
any  day  and  hour  you  wish.  Farewell." 

1  This  must  refer  to  a  visit  Sophie  Dorothea  was  going  to  make  to  the 
Electress  of  Brandenburg  at  Lutzenburg.    The  Electress  was  probably  staying 
at  Hanover  and  Sophie  Dorothea  was  returning  with  her  to  Lutzenburg. 

2  Probably  Ferdinand,  the  favourite  violinist  of  the  Electress  of  Branden- 
burg. 


CHAPTER  XXII. 

THE  GATHERING  STORM. 

My  star  !  a  baleful  one. 
I  see  the  black  night,  and  hear  the  wolf. 
What  star  ? 

TENNYSON,  Queen  Mary. 

KONIGSMARCK  went  to  Hamburg  in  January  to  see  if  he 
could  raise  money,  but  he  failed,  and  returned  to  Hanover 
more  embarrassed  than  before.  At  Hanover  he  had  long 
outworn  his  welcome :  the  court  had  no  smiles  for  alien 
nobles  when  they  were  short  of  money,  and  Konigsmarck 
was  now  a  suspect  and  under  a  cloud. 

Apart  from  the  chronic  difficulty  with  Sophie  Dorothea, 
the  Electoral  family  had  its  own  worries.  Prince  Max 
was  again  troublesome,  and  the  King  of  Denmark  and 
Duke  Antony  Ulrich  of  Wolfenbiittel  were  secretly  inciting 
him  to  rebel.  The  hatred  of  the  last-named  prince  for  the 
House  of  Hanover  was  now  open  and  declared  ;  and  he 
was  an  exceedingly  dangerous  enemy,  as  his  knowledge  of 
the  domestic  discontent  in  the  Elector's  family  gave  him 
much  opportunity  of  intrigue.  Informed  of  everything  at 
the  Hanoverian  court,  it  is  said  that  Duke  Antony  Ulrich 
made  overtures  to  Sophie  Dorothea  to  induce  her  to  take 
part  against  the  Electoral  House,  and  she  was  not  indis- 
posed to  listen,  though  she  hesitated  to  commit  herself 
until  all  hope  of  obtaining  money  for  a  separate  establish- 
ment from  her  father  was  at  an  end. 

Both  Hanover  and  Wolfenbiittel  were  full  of  spies,  em- 
ployed by  their  respective  princes  against  each  other,  and 
the  Elector  soon  got  knowledge  of  these  intrigues.  Prince 
Max  was  sent  to  Savoy,  where  he  took  command  of  a  regi- 
ment of  cavalry,  his  father  allowing  him  thirteen  thousand 
dollars  instead  of  the  six  thousand  he  had  previously  granted 
him.  But,  as  the  English  envoy  shrewdly  remarks,  this  was 

325 


326    THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

t 

"  only  to  get  rid  of  him,  for  fear  he  should  revolt  again  V 
Prince  Christian,  who  was  also  suspected,  was  sent  into 
Hungary  to  take  part  in  a  campaign  for  the  Emperor.  Of 
the  disaffected  there  remained  only  Sophie  Dorothea,  whose 
intrigue  with  Konigsmarck,  if  the  Elector  had  but  known 
it,  was  the  most  dangerous  of  all.  But  as  soon  as  Ernest 
Augustus  had  got  rid  of  his  insubordinate  sons  he  fell  ill, 
so  ill  that  fears  were  entertained  of  his  life ;  these  family 
worries  had  probably  told  upon  his  health,  for  he  was  now 
advancing  in  years,  and  had  always  been  a  free  liver.2  He 
was  not  nearly  as  robust  as  his  elder  brother,  the  Duke  of 
Celle,  whose  temperate  habits  and  love  of  hunting  and  out- 
door pursuits  gave  him  the  enjoyment  of  vigorous  health. 

The  Elector's  serious  illness  brought  many  questions 
to  the  front  which  had  hitherto  lain  in  abeyance.  Though 
there  was  every  reason  to  believe  the  Electoral  Prince 
would  adhere  in  the  main  to  his  father's  policy,  yet  the 
Elector's  death  which  now  seemed  within  the  range  of 
practical  politics,  would  of  necessity  bring  about  changes — 
none  more  momentous  than  the  dethronement  of  Countess 
Platen  from  the  position  of  power  she  had  so  long  enjoyed. 
It  would  mean,  also,  the  relegation  of  the  Electress  Sophia 
to  the  comparative  obscurity  of  Electress-Dowager,  and 
would,  of  course,  involve  the  accession  of  Sophie  Dorothea 
to  the  dignity  of  Electress.  Sophie  Dorothea  did  not 
covet  the  Electoral  diadem,  but  it  would  be'  thrust  upon 
her  whether  she  would  or  no,  and  the  mere  fact  of  being 
Electress,  though  she  had  no  influence  with  her  husband, 
would  of  necessity  give  her  added  dignity  and  honour. 
She  would  become  a  force  for  her  enemies  to  reckon  with, 
especially  as  she  had  the  Celle  family  influence  at  her  back. 

The  prospect  of  Sophie  Dorothea  reigning  at  Hanover 
as  Electress  was  not  contemplated  with  equanimity  either 
by  the  Electress  Sophia  or  by  the  Countess  Platen,  though 
from  different  reasons.  Countess  Platen  well  understood 
that  the  new  Electress  would  certainly  not  ignore  her  arro- 
gance as  the  Electress  Sophia  had  done,  and  she  might 

1  Cresset's  Despatches,  Celle,  March  20,  1694.  Prince  Max  subsequently 
became  a  Roman  Catholic  and  Jacobite,  and  died  in  open  rebellion  against 
his  elder  brother  (George  I.)  in  1726. 

2Schaumann  is  my  authority  for  this  statement.  The  Elector's  illness 
is  not  mentioned  in  the  English  envoy's  despatches. 


THE  GATHERING  STORM  327 

even  refuse  to  receive  her  at  her  court.  She  therefore 
redoubled  her  efforts  to  involve  the  Princess  in  disgrace 
and  ruin,  and  unfortunately  the  Konigsmarck  affair  gave 
her  a  handle.  There  is  nothing  to  show  that  the  Electress 
Sophia  took  part  in  these  tactics,  for  though  she  strongly 
disliked  the  idea  of  the  daughter  of  the  despised  d'Olbreuse 
taking  precedence  of  her,  her  line  of  policy  had  hitherto 
been  to  give  Countess  Platen  a  wide  berth,  and  she  was  not 
likely  to  reverse  it  now. 

The  Princess  cared  nothing  for  affairs  of  state,  and, 
absorbed  as  she  was  in  her  mad  passion  for  Konigsmarck, 
heedless  alike  of  appearances  and  consequences,  she  thought- 
lessly played  into  the  hands  of  her  enemies.  Countess  Platen 
was  so  far  successful  in  her  manoeuvres  that  she  managed 
to  poison  the  mind  of  the  Elector  against  his  daughter-in- 
law,  and  she  inflamed  the  Electoral  Prince  against  his  wife 
anew.  The  immediate  result  was  that  he  put  spies  to 
watch  Sophie  Dorothea  and  Konigsmarck,  and  the  Prin- 
cess's position  at  Hanover  became  more  intolerable  than 
before.  The  lynx-eyed  Knesebeck  became  aware  of  the 
danger,  and  implored  the  Princess  either  to  give  up  the 
intrigue,  or  to  allow  her  to  retire  from  her  service.  But 
the  Princess  refused  to  let  her  go,  and  Knesebeck,  who  was 
devotedly  attached  to  her  mistress,  realising  that  if  she 
abandoned  her  she  would  be  without  a  friend,  stayed  on. 
She  was  aware  of  the  constant  efforts  which  the  Princess 
was  making  to  leave  Hanover  and  obtain  a  residence  in 
Celle  territory  from  her  father,  and  she  probably  thought 
if  she  remained  she  might  save  her  mistress  from  desperate 
steps  and  follow  her  in  an  honourable  retreat  from  Hanover. 

But  obstacles  only  seemed  to  heighten  the  Princess's 
passion.  Since  her  return  from  Celle  in  the  autumn  she 
had  not  relaxed  her  efforts  to  obtain  money  from  her 
parents  ;  but  the  Duke  of  Celle  had  no  funds  to  spare, 
crippled  as  he  was  by  ruinous  wars,  nor  was  he  in  a  mood 
to  listen  to  the  language  of  revolt.  With  her  mother  the 
Princess  appears  to  have  been  more  successful,  for  we  find 
Cresset,  the  English  envoy,  writing  to  England  about  this 
time  of  "  the  desire  of  this  Duchess  [Celle]  to  pay  thirty 
thousand  or  forty  thousand  crowns  a  fond  perdu  into  our 
bank,  if  it  be  not  filled  or  clogged  up  ".  In  the  light  of  the 
Princess's  letters  we  may  hazard  a  guess  that  the  Duchess 


3z8   THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

intended  this  sum  to  go  towards  her  daughter's  separate 
establishment,  little  dreaming,  of  course,  that  the  separate 
establishment  was  but  a  blind,  and  she  really  wanted  the 
money  to  fly  with  Konigsmarck  to  some  distant  land. 

Every  thought  and  action  of  the  Princess  at  this  time 
was  directed  to  one  end  only — flight,  whither,  when,  and 
how  she  knew  not.  A  hundred  expedients  flitted  through 
her  brain  only  to  be  dismissed,  for  one  obstacle  rendered 
them  all  impossible — lack  of  money ;  a  prosaic  reason  to 
enter  into  the  romance  of  princely  personages,  but  never- 
theless a  real  one.  The  Princess  did  not  want  much  money, 
but  some  she  must  have — enough  to  enable  her  to  live  in 
decent  independence.  It  seemed  to  her,  that  when  she  had 
taken  her  flight  to  some  far-off  country,  the  court  of  Han- 
over would  be  only  too  glad  to  be  rid  of  her,  a  divorce 
would  inevitably  follow,  and  she  would  then  be  allowed 
to  marry  Konigsmarck  and  to  spend  the  rest  of  her  life 
quietly  with  him.  That  she  would  have  found  either  hap- 
piness or  peace  may  be  doubted,  but  she  was  willing  to 
take  the  risk.  She  was  willing  to  abandon  her  high  posi- 
tion and  rank,  the  pomp  and  glitter  of  courts,  a  brilliant 
prospect  of  crowns  and  kingdoms,  for  obscurity,  dishonour, 
and  comparative  poverty.  Whatever  view  we  may  take  of 
her  ethical  standard,  we  cannot  doubt  the  depth  and  sin- 
cerity of  her  one  great  love  passion,  all  the  greater  because 
of  the  unworthiness  of  the  man  for  whom  she  counted  it 
joy  to  sacrifice  all  she  had  in  the  world. 

Konigsmarck,  in  his  letters  and  interviews,  now  as 
before,  was  constantly  inciting  the  Princess  to  revolt,  and 
his  alternate  temptations  and  reproaches  drove  her  nearly 
beside  herself.  In  truth  Konigsmarck  was  himself  in  a 
tight  place.  Even  Marshal  Podevils,  his  staunchest  friend, 
turned  against  him  ;  and  when  he  remonstrated  with  the 
Field- Marshal  about  his  lack  of  promotion,  and  threatened 
to  quit  the  Hanoverian  service,  Podevils  curtly  replied  that 
he  would  put  no  obstacle  in  his  way.  Undoubtedly  the 
most  dignified  course  for  Konigsmarck  to  have  taken  would 
have  been  to  have  acted  on  this  hint  and  have  resigned  his 
commission  in  a  service  where  he  was  so  unwelcome. 

At  this  juncture  the  Countess  Platen,  who  knew  how 
hard  pressed  he  was,  but  who  retained  a  liking  for  him, 
sought  anew  to  tempt  him  from  his  allegiance  to  the 


THE  GATHERING  STORM  329 

Princess,  and  with  shameless  effrontery  offered  him  her 
•daughter  in  marriage,  promising  him  in  return  the  favour 
of  the  Elector,  rapid  promotion  in  the  army,  and  her  power- 
ful support.  She  knew  full  well  that  his  embarrassments, 
though  acute  just  now,  were  only  temporary,  and  thus  she 
would  not  only  secure  an  eligible  parti  for  her  daughter, 
but  would  win  him  over  to  her  own  interests. 

To  his  credit,  be  it  said,  Konigsmarck  resisted  the  temp- 
tress, and  rejected  her  offer  with  scorn  and  indignation. 
He  went  so  far  as  to  remind  the  Countess  Platen  that  there 
were  certain  reasons  why  he  should  not  marry  her  daughter.1 
These  scruples  the  Countess  Platen  neither  understood  nor 
sympathised  with ;  indeed,  she  strongly  resented  them,  and 
she  and  Konigsmarck  parted  in  bitter  anger.  "  A  slighted 
woman  knows  no  bounds,"  and  she  soon  made  her  quondam 
lover  feel  the  weight  of  her  displeasure.  A  rumour  ran 
round  the  court  that  Konigsmarck  would  be  arrested  on 
the  ground  that  he  had  not  paid  his  gambling  debts  in 
Flanders  and  thereby  brought  discredit  to  the  Hanoverian 
army. 

At  this  moment,  just  when  Konigsmarck's  affairs  were 
at  their  blackest,  a  door  of  escape  was  opened  to  him  by 
the  sudden  accession  of  his  friend  Duke  Frederick  Augustus 
to  the  Electorate  of  Saxony.  Duke  Frederick  Augustus 
succeeded  his  brother,  the  Elector  George  Frederick,  whose 
death  was  sudden  and  tragic.  The  young  Elector  George, 
who  was  weak  and  dissolute,  was  entirely  under  the  sway 
•of  a  beautiful  brunette  of  twenty,  whom  he  created  the  Coun- 
tess von  Roohlitz.  During  her  brief  reign  the  favourite 
ruled  Dresden  with  a  rod  of  iron,  and  drove  the  Electress 
from  the  court.  Early  in  April,  1694,  sne  died  suddenly  of 
small-pox,  and  the  Elector,  who  would  not  leave  her  bed- 
side, caught  the  fell  disease  and  died  eleven  days  later. 
Stepney,  the  English  envoy  at  Dresden,  thus  writes  in  his 
quaint  way  :— 

1  This  lady,  Charlotte  Sophia,  the  young  Countess  Platen  referred  to 
once  or  twice  in  the  correspondence,  was  said  to  be  the  daughter  of  Countess 
Platen  by  the  Elector  Ernest  Augustus.  She  married,  later,  Baron  Kielman- 
segge,  Master  of  the  Horse,  and  accompanied  George  I.  to  England.  On  the 
•death  of  her  husband  George  I.  raised  her  to  the  rank  of  Countess  of  Dar- 
lington. There  is  evidence  to  show  that  George  I.  recognised  the  kinship 
between  him  and  Lady  Darlington,  but  she  was  generally  supposed  to  be 
his  mistress.  The  precise  relationship  must  always  remain  a  mystery. 


330   THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

"  The  revolution  we  have  had  here  is  so  sudden  and  so- 
extraordinary  and  so  surprising  that  I  know  of  no  romance 
or  tragedy  to  compare  to  it  except  All  for  Love.  A  virtu- 
ous Electrice  has  been  slighted  like  Octavia,  yet  supported 
her  disgrace  with  a  patience  and  constancy  equall  to  ye 
Roman  Ladyes.  An  Elector  has  revelled  in  pleasures  with 
an  Imperious  Mistress  (who  pretended  to  be  a  wife),  and 
defyed  ye  open  Scandall  of  Adultery  and  double  Marriage  * 
till  ye  Scene  changed,  and  ye  fond  Pair  were  carried  off 
ye  Stage  one  after  ye  other  (like  Anthony  and  Cleopatra) 
in  less  than  a  month.  Our  Saxon-Lady  was  dressed  up 
in  as  much  State  after  her  death  as  ye  Egyptian  Queen 
was  before  she  applied  ye  Aspicks,  and  was  buryed  in  a 
Mausoleum  where  lay  three  Princes  of  ye  Electorall  family, 
but  has  had  little  rest  there  ;  For  ye  rage  of  ye  new  Govern- 
ment h£s  rifled  her  coffin  of  all  her  ornaments  and  has 
transported  ye  Corps  naked  to  a  churchyard  where  lye 
none  but  Malefactors  and  those  who  dye  of  pestilential 
distempers.  The  Mother  for  having  had  a  handsome 
daughter  is  prosecuted  as  a  Witch  ;  as  if  Beauty  without 
Philters  were  not  charm  enough  to  make  a  Prince  of  26 
Love  passionately  as  ye  Elector  did,  and  all  families  here 
who  have  either  Allyances  or  friendship  with  these  poor 
Ladyes  are  either  crushed  or  shaken  by  the  Fall,  as  is- 
usuall  in  mighty  ruines."1 

Truly  a  revolution — transformation,  rather!  Youth, 
beauty,  vice,  insolent  in  their  power,  and  suddenly  King 
Death  waves  his  wand  and  they  are  swept  from  the  stage 
and  become  as  though  they  had  never  been.  What  an 
opportunity  for  the  moralist!  It  may  be  feared,  however, 
that  the  moral  was  lost  on  the. royal  brother  Augustus  who- 
succeeded  thus  unexpectedly  ;  and  so  far  as  morals  went 
the  court  of  Dresden  lost  rather  than  gained  by  the  ex- 
change. Augustus  II.,  better  known  in  history  as  Augustus 
the  Strong,  the  modern  Sardanapalus,  "  the  Saxon  man  of 
sin,"  as  Carlyle  calls  him,  scandalised  and  dazzled  Europe 
for  nigh  on  half  a  century  with  his  vices.  The  Elector 
George  was  weak,  the  besotted  lover  of  one  imperious 
mistress,  who  ruled  him  wholly.  The  Elector  Augustus 
was  physically  strong,  and  ruled  by  nothing  save  his  despotic 

1  Stepney's  Despatches,  Dresden,  May  J|,  1694,  State  Paper  Office,, 
"  Foreign  Papers,"  Germany. 


THE  GATHERING  STORM  331 

will  and  his  unbridled  lusts.  The  number  of  his  mistresses 
bid  fair  to  rival  those  of  Solomon,  but  no  one  of  them  ruled 
him,  for  he  devoted  himself  to  none.  "  Constancy  is  not  in 
his  nature,"  writes  Stepney,  "  and  he  may  be  called  in  ye 
liberall  sense  a  father  of  his  people,  as  good  King  Charles 
was,  for  he  is  an  impartial  distributor  of  his  bounty,  and 
while  he  is  in  ye  humour,  the  first  woman  yl  offers  is  sure 
of  his  caresses."  l  This  was  written  in  no  spirit  of  exaggera- 
tion. Augustus  was  "father  of  his  people,"  indeed,  for  his 
court  formed  a  seraglio,  and  when  he  died  he  had  no  less 
than  three  hundred  and  fifty-four  children  by  his  numerous 
mistresses.  Yet  there  was  a  certain  splendour  about  the 
Saxon  Elector.  Like  Augustus  of  Rome,  he  found  a  city 
of  brick  and  left  a  city  of  marble.  During  his  reign 
Dresden  became  one  of  the  most  beautiful  cities  in  Europe. 
He  established  noble  picture-galleries  and  museums  full  of 
objects  of  art,  metal  work,  armoury,  precious  stones,  porce- 
lain, and  glass.  Great  though  were  his  vices,  wanton  though 
his  extravagances,  his  love  of  the  fine  arts  redeemed  him 
from  utter  grossness.  His  reign  indeed  recalled  the  de- 
clining days  of  imperial  Rome,  when  the  most  exquisite 
polish  and  the  grossest  licentiousness  flourished  side  by 
side.  Reckless,  selfish,  ambkious,  luxurious,  and  despotic, 
the  career  of  Augustus  the  Strong  affords  few  parallels 
since  the  days  of  the  Caesars. 

Such  was  the  Prince  whose  sudden  advent  to  power 
was  hailed  by  Konigsmarck  as  a  means  of  deliverance  from 
his  troubles.  He  had  written  of  him  long  ago  to  the 
Princess  :  "  He  is  a  good  sort  of  prince  ;  I  wish  he  would 
become  Elector".  His  wishes  were  now  gratified,  and 
on  receipt  of  the  news  he  posted  off  to  Dresden  without 
delay. 

The  truth  of  the  familiar  Scripture,  "  Put  not  your  trust 
in  princes,"  must  surely  have  been  proved  by  Konigsmarck 
more  than  once  in  his  adventurous  career.  Yet  there  were 
several  reasons  why  he  should  be  inclined  to  put  his  trust 
in  this  particular  prince  :  they  were  old  friends  and  boon 
companions  ;  they  had  travelled  about  Europe  together 
.in  1687;  they  had  fought  together,  drank  together,  and 


1  Stepney's  Despatches,  Dresden,  ^  g9,  1694. 


332    THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

gambled  together  during  the  campaign  in  Flanders  in 
1692,  when  Duke  Frederick  Augustus  disappeared,  leaving 
behind  him  a  pile  of  unpaid  gambling  debts,  and  his  boon 
companions  cursing  him,  as  well  they  might.  Of  them 
Konigsmarck  was  one  of  the  heaviest  creditors,  for  the 
Saxon  Prince  owed  him  no  less  than  thirty  thousand 
crowns.  While  he  was  only  Duke  Frederick  Augustus, 
with  extravagant  habits  and  no  power,  to  redeem  the  debt 
seemed  hopeless,  but  it  was  quite  another  thing  now  that 
he  had  become  Elector.  So  Konigsmarck  argued,  and  the 
present  state  of  his  affairs  lending  him  wings,  he  set  off 
for  Dresden  in  almost  indecent  ihaste,  lest  other  claimants 
should  be  in  the  field  before  him.  He  had  interest,  too, 
at  his  back,  for  without  that  interest  his  claim  would  have 
been  little  worth. 

Konigsmarck  arrived  at  Dresden  within  a  week  of  the 
Elector  George's  death.  Notwithstanding  the  nature  of 
his  errand,  which  could  hardly  have  been  quite  agree- 
able to  the  new  Elector,  he  was  favourably  received,  and 
his  petition  listened  to  ver)'  graciously.  Augustus  had 
not  forgotten — not  at  all ;  he  never  forgot  a  debt  of  hon- 
our, but  it  was  a  little  inconvenient  for  him  just  then  to 
find  so  much  ready  money..  He  was  barely  settled  on 
his  Electoral  throne,  and  heavy  expenses  consequent  on 
funeral  rites  and  coronation  festivities  had  to  be  borne ; 
but  he  would  give  Konigsmarck  the  post  of  major-general 
in  the  Saxon  army  in  payment  of  the  debt.  This  was 
hardly  what  Konigsmarck  expected  or  desired  :  his  wish 
was  a  large  sum  of  ready  money.  But  the  offer  was  better 
than  nothing  ;  the  post  was  one  of  dignity,  the  pay  was 
large,  and  the  rank  and  perquisites  considerable.  The 
favour  of  the  Elector  was  an  earnest  of  better  things  to 
come  (which  indeed  were  hinted  at),  so  he  accepted  it  with 
all  the  grace  he  could. 

It  is  not  easy  to  see  how  Konigsmarck  could  have 
accepted  this  post  as  major-general  in  the  Saxon  army,  as 
he  undoubtedly  did,  consistently  with  the  fact  that  he  held 
at  the  same  time  the  post  of  colonel  in  the  Hanoverian 
army l  and  with  his  promise  to  the  Princess  to  fly  with  her 

1  Many  chroniclers  have  puzzled  their  heads  to  reconcile  these  two  facts, 
but  the  question  is  absolutely  set  at  rest  by  the  despatches  of  Stepney,  which 
are  now  published  for  the  first  time  in  this  book.  They  will  be  quoted  later, 


THE  GATHERING  STORM 


333 


at  the  first  opportunity  to  some  far-off  corner  of  the  world. 
But  perhaps  in  this,  too,  he  looked  to  the  favour  of  the 
Elector. 

Konigsmarck's  business  having  been  settled,  his  thoughts 
lightly  turned  to  pleasure,  and  the  court  of  Dresden  afforded 
ample  opportunities.  Augustus  the  Strong  did  not  greatly 
mourn  his  departed  brother,  who  indeed  left  few  to  mourn 
him  ;  and  after  he  had  gratified  his  love  of  display  by  giv- 
ing him  a  gorgeous  funeral,  he  turned  his  attention  to  the 
ceremonies  and  festivities  of  his  own  coronation,  and  he 
found  time  to  inaugurate  the  round  of  revelry,  feasts,  and 
entertainments  which  lasted  throughout  his  reign.  To 
these  entertainments  Konigsmarck  was  bidden  as  a  wel- 
come guest,  and  the  new  major-general  proved  his  mettle, 
as  was  meet  for  one  so  distinguished  in  love  and*  war  and 
so  celebrated  in  his  adventures.  Nor  was  he  merely  a 
welcome  guest  at  the  table  of  the  Elector.  From  the 
English  envoy's  (Stepney's)  correspondence  at  this  period 
it  appears  that  he  was  well  received  in  Dresden  as  the 
favoured  guest  of  many  nobles,  and  he  himself  entertained 
him,  as  he  "had  known  him  in  England,  Hamburg, 
Flanders  and  elsewhere  ".  True  he  states  that  he  had  "  no- 
great  opinion  of  ye  sparke,"  but  that  was  after  his  fall,  and 
no  one  has  a  great  opinion  of  the  fallen. 

Feasting  and  riotous  living  seem  hardly  fitting  for  a 
disconsolate  lover  such  as  Konigsmarck  avowed  himself 
to  be,  whose  one  desire  was  to  find  some  "  corner  of  the 
world  "  where  he  might  live  with  the  object  of  his  love,  and 
forego  all  honour  and  pleasure  for  her  dear  sake.  But  few 
men  are  quite  consistent,  and  Konigsmarck  was  not  among 
them.  While  the  Princess  was  eating  her  heart  out  in  the 
palace  at  Hanover,  weeping  and  wailing,  quarrelling  with 
her  husband,  importuning  her  parents,  moving  Heaven  and 
earth  to  advance  her  pet  scheme,  Konigsmarck  was  revel- 
ling in  the  wanton  halls  of  Augustus  the  Strong.  It  is  a 
sad  fact,  but  there  is  no  denying  it,  for  this  is  a  true  his- 
tory. His  conduct  was  far  from  that  of  an  ideal  lover.  If 
he  had  kept  to  eating  and  drinking  and  high  play,  it 
would  have  mattered  little,  but  unfortunately  the  wine-cup 
loosens  the  tongue,  and  the  brilliant  Konigsmarck,  known 

and  show  quite  clearly  that  Konigsmarck  was  major-general  in  the  Saxon. 
army  at  the  same  time  that  he  was  a  colonel  in  the  Hanoverian  service. 


334   THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

to  all  Europe  for  his  wit  and  amours,  must  needs  maintain 
his  reputation  at  Dresden  by  boasting  of  his  conquests 
at  the  court  of  Hanover.  Nothing  interested  the  different 
courts  of  Germany  so  much  as  the  vices  and  scandals  of 
their  neighbours,  and  the  court  of  Hanover  afforded  a  rare 
opportunity.  Konigsmarck  was  more  than  ready  to  gratify 
their  curiosity  about  it.  Countess  Platen,  Madame  Weyhe, 
Madame  Podevils,  Fraulein  Schulenburg,  the  Elector  and 
the  Electoral  Prince  all  furnished  matter  for  sundry  spicy 
tales,  Countess  Platen  most  of  all.  How  Countess  Platen 
bathed  in  milk  and  then  gave  it  away  as  a  dole  to  the  poor 
of  Hanover,  how  she  painted  her  face,  how  she  domin- 
eered over  the  Elector,  and  how  she  made  overtures  to 
Konigsmarck,  offering  him  her  daughter,  and  his  reasons 
for  refusing — all  this  and  much  more  he  babbled  in  his  cups, 
and  all  was  duly  reported  and  exaggerated,  if  exaggera- 
tion were  possible,  to  the  court  of  Hanover  by  informers  at 
Dresden. 

The  rage  of  Countess  Platen  and  the  other  ladies  may 
be  better  imagined  than  described.  Whether  Konigsmarck 
went  further,  as  his  enemies  alleged,  and  to  his  lasting  dis- 
honour boasted  of  his  intrigue  with  the  Electoral  Princess, 
there  exists  no  evidence  to  show.  From  Stepney's  de- 
spatches it  would  appear  that  he  did  not,  for  that  worthy 
later  mentions  the  Princess's  name  in  connection  with 
Konigsmarck  with  surprise.  On  the  other  hand,  it  must 
be  remembered  that  the  same  charge  had  been  brought 
against  Konigsmarck  before,  and  he  had  denied  it  so  far  as 
the  Princess  was  concerned,  though  he  admitted  it  in  the 
case  of  Countess  Platen  and  others.  His  denial  counts  for 
little,  for  he  was  probably  too  much  intoxicated  to  remember 
what  he  said  and  what  he  did  not  say.  We  must  not  judge 
him  too  harshly  for  his  free  drinking,  for  it  was  in  those 
days  the  custom  of  courts,  and  there  was  never  a  festive 
gathering  but  that  the  majority  became  more  or  less  intoxi- 
cated. But  the  fact  that  he  was  a  wine-bibber  undoubt- 
edly detracts  from  the  value  of  his  denial.  Be  that  as  it 
may,  there  is  no  doubt  whatever  that  Konigsmarck's  gossip 
at  Dresden  was  repeated  at  Hanover  to  the  people  about 
whom  he  talked,  and  they  were  incensed  beyond  measure. 
This  did  not  only  apply  to  Countess  Platen  and  the  Elector 
Ernest  Augustus,  but  to  Fraulein  Schulenburg  and  the 


THE  GATHERING  STORM  335 

Electoral  Prince.  Ermengarda  Melusina  Schulenburg,  to 
her  credit  be  it  said,  never  mixed  herself  up  in  court  quarrels, 
nor  sought  to  thrust  herself  upon  the  Electoral  Princess  ; 
she  was  of  a  peaceable  disposition,  and  this  no  doubt  was 
the  secret  of  her  lasting  hold  on  George's  affections.  But 
even  Ermengarda  Melusina  had  her  foibles  ;  she  was  avari- 
cious (perhaps  wisely  so,  for  she  knew  that  the  favour  of 
princes  was  fickle),  and  she  was  not  without  her  share  of 
vanity.  To  hear  that  her  grasping  propensities  had  been 
publicly  derided  and  her  charms  decried  at  the  court  of 
Dresden  by  that  loose  fish  Konigsmarck  was  more  than 
she  could  bear,  and  her  tears  of  rage  and  vexation  made 
the  Electoral  Prince  more  bitter  towards  his  wife's  lover 
and  more  incensed  with  his  wife.  So  altogether  Konigs- 
marck had  a  pretty  tempest  brewing  against  his  return  to 
Hanover. 

Meantime  the  unhappy  Princess,  railing  more  than  ever 
against  her  Hanoverian  surroundings,  was  counting  the 
days  for  her  lover's  return  in  her  dull  apartments  in  the 
old  Leine  Schloss,  and  seeking  a  pretext  which  would  serve 
to  carry  out  her  scheme  of  separation  from  her  husband. 
It  was  not  long  in  coming.  The  sullen  and  silent  Electoral 
Prince  as  a  rule  avoided  meeting  his  consort  save  in  public  ; 
but  one  day,  provoked  by  the  tears  of  Schulenburg  and  the 
tales  from  Dresden,  he  burst  into  Sophie  Dorothea's  apart- 
ments without  ceremony,  and  upbraided  her  coarsely  for 
her  favours  to  Konigsmarck,  telling  her  that  she  was  the 
by-word  of  the  Saxon  court.  The  Princess,  who  hated  her 
husband  with  a  loathing  which  passes  words  to  describe, 
was  not  slow  to  defend  herself.  Her  ancient  grievance 
against  Schulenburg  lent  a  barbed  tip  to  her  tongue,  and 
with  passion  she  retorted  that  it  was  not  she,  but  her  husband 
and  his  scarecrow  mistress  who  were  the  laughing  stock  of 
the  courts  of  Europe.  She  went  on  to  say  that  the  one 
thing  she  desired  was  a  divorce,  to  which  the  Prince  retorted 
that  he  would  be  only  too  glad  to  grant  it  to  her,  and  would 
enter  into  any  plan  to  bring  it  about.  Bitter  recriminations 
followed,  and  the  quarrel  grew  fiercer,  until  at  last,  goaded 
beyond  control  by  some  taunt  levelled  at  his  mistress, 
George  Louis  sprang  at  his  wife,  and,  seizing  her  by  the 
throat,  threatened  to  strangle  her.  The  shrieks  of  the 
Princess  brought  Knesebeck  and  other  attendants  rushing 


336   THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

into  the  chamber,  and  then  the  Prince  relaxed  his  hold  on 
his  half-fainting  wife,  and  threw  her  from  him,  crying  with 
an  oath  that  he  would  never  see  her  again.  As  soon  as 
she  recovered,  the  Princess,  still  smarting  under  this  brutal 
insult,  without  asking  leave  of  the  Elector,  as  she  ought  to- 
have  done,  set  out  for  Celle  immediately,  announcing,  to 
all  who  cared  to  listen,  her  intention  of  seeking  her  parents' 
protection  and  of  never  returning  to  Hanover.  So  far  as 
her  husband  was  concerned  she  declared  that  the  breach 
was  irreparable,  as  indeed  it  proved  to  be. 

Travelling  nearly  all  night,  the  Princess  arrived  at  Celle 
early  in  the  morning  and  threw  herself  at  her  astonished 
parents'  feet.  To  them  she  told  her  pitiful  story,  pointing 
to  the  marks  of  violence  which  she  bore  on  her  body  and 
entreating  their  aid  and  shelter.  The  Duchess  of  Celle,  who 
loved  her  daughter  beyond  all  things,  took  her  part  warmly, 
and  declared  that  nothing  should  part  them  again ;  but 
the  Duke,  influenced  by  Bernstorff,  refused  to  listen  to 
his  daughter,  rebuked  her  for  her  insubordination,  and  bade 
her  roughly  to  return  to  Hanover  and  her  duty.  He  had 
no  sympathy  with  her  grievance  against  Schulenburg,  and 
he  bade  her  take  as  an  example  of  wifely  duty  her  excellent 
mother-in-law,  the  Electress  Sophia,  who  never  raised  diffi- 
culties of  this  kind.  No  doubt  he  thought  the  graceless 
Konigsmarck  was  at  the  bottom  of  it  all.  In  truth,  the 
Duke  of  Celle  could  ill  afford  a  rupture  with  Hanover  just 
then.  His  brother  had  stood  by  him  bravely  throughout 
the  war  with  the  Danes,  which  was  far  more  his  quarrel 
than  the  Elector's.  The  danger  was  not  yet  over,  for  the 
Danes  were  still  threatening  to  invade  his  territory,  and 
their  demands  for  indemnity  had  reduced  his  exchequer  to 
its  lowest  ebb.  Thus  there  were  reasons  of  state  as  well  as 
of  domestic  policy  for  his  insisting  on  his  daughter's  return 
and  if  he  could  have  had  his  way  he  would  have  packed  her 
back  to  Hanover  the  same  day.  But  a  man,  even  though 
he  be  a  duke  and  a  father,  is  apt  to  reckon  without  his  host 
where  women  are  concerned,  for,  finding  tears  and  prayers 
unavailing,  Sophie  Dorothea  promptly  relapsed  into  violent 
hysterics.  Her  mother  declared  her  quite  unfit  to  travel, 
and  in  this  opinion  she  was  duly  seconded  by  the  court 
physician,  who  feared  the  strain  on  the  Princess's  reason. 

There  is  little  doubt  that  Sophie  Dorothea  was  really 


THE  GATHERING  STORM  337 

ill — worn  out  by  anxiety  and  grief;  and  this,  added  to  her 
husband's  brutality,  and  her  father's  repulse,  reduced  her  to 
a  state  of  nervous  prostration  from  which  she  took  some 
weeks  to  recover.  The  old  Duke,  who  really  loved  his 
daughter  after  his  fashion,  though  incensed  at  her  conduct 
(and  it  must  be  admitted  she  was  a  troublesome  daughter), 
was  moved  by  her  illness  and  distress,  and,  when  he  had 
posted  a  despatch  to  Hanover  he  gave  her  leave  to  remain 
with  her  mother  for  a  time,  premising  that  she  must  return 
to  Hanover  and  her  duty  as  soon  as  she  was  able  to  travel. 
He  could  grant  her  this  favour  the  more  easily,  as  the  Elector 
and  Electress  were  setting  out  for  Wiesbaden  for  a  cure,  and 
the  court  would  be  away  from  Hanover  for  the  time  being. 
So  Sophie  Dorothea  stayed  on  with  her  mother  at  Celle  in 
absolute  retirement,  seeing  no  one,  her  health  being  still 
delicate,  and  when  the  court  moved  to  Brockhausen  she 
went  there  too  with  her  parents.1  Whenever  she  had  an 
opportunity  she  renewed  her  entreaties  to  her  father  to  give 
her  a  separate  establishment,  but  he  sternly  refused. 

Smarting  under  her  disappointment,  the  Princess  wrote 
the  letters  to  her  lover,  complaining  bitterly  of  her  father's 
harshness,  which  afterwards  told  so  heavily  against  her,  and 
alienated  the  only  powerful  friend  she  had  in  the  world. 

The  Princess  went  to  Celle  at  the  end  of  April,  soon 
after  Konigsmarck's  departure  for  Dresden  ;  she  remained 
there  and  at  Brockhausen  all  through  May,  and  it  was  not 
until  the  middle  of  June  that  the  Duke  of  Celle  insisted  on 
sending  her  back  to  Hanover.  The  Elector  and  Electress 
had  now  returned  from  Wiesbaden,  and  had  signified  their 
willingness  to  welcome  back  their  errant  daughter-in-law ; 
moreover,  the  Electoral  Prince,  who  had  incurred  his  share 
of  blame  for  bringing  about  this  family  scandal,  had  gone 
to  Berlin  on  a  visit  to  his  sister,  the  Electress  of  Branden- 
burg. It  was  thought  advisable  that  he  should  absent 
himself  for  a  time  from  his  wife,  and  meanwhile  the  parents 
hoped  to  patch  up  again  the  outward  semblance  of  a  recon- 
ciliation between  the  ill-mated  pair,  as  they  had  often  done 
before.  The  Princess  would  therefore  not  have  to  face  the 
ordeal  of  meeting  her  husband  immediately  on  her  return 
to  Hanover,  and  as  she  was  now  better,  the  Duke  of  Celle 

!  *  t  •! 

1  Cresset's  Despatches,  Celle. 

22 


338   THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

insisted  that  she  should  go  back,  as  her  absence  for  so  long 
a  time  was  creating  a  scandal.  In  vain  the  Princess  wept 
and  prayed.  The  Duke,  prompted  by  Bernstorff,  bade  her 
roughly  go  back  to  her  duty.  It  is  possible  that  had  he 
temporised,  or  held  out  hope  of  granting  her  request,  the 
catastrophe  which  afterwards  wrecked  the  happiness  of  his 
daughter  might  have  been  averted.  But  the  Duke  was 
nothing  of  a  diplomatist ;  he  was  simply  a  headstrong  old 
man,  and  unfortunately  the  Princess  had  inherited  from  him 
a  similar  temperament.  Thus,  driven  to  bay,  she  lost  her 
temper  and  threatened  desperate  courses.  Words  passed 
between  her  and  her  father  which  were  never  forgotten  nor 
quite  forgiven.  In  vain  the  Duchess  of  Celle  tried  to  make 
peace,  but  between  two  such  headstrong  natures  her  words 
were  only  oil  to  the  flames.  There  was  nothing  for  the 
Princess  to  do  but  to  return  to  the  place  she  had  left  two 
months  before  vowing  she  would  never  see  it  again.  This 
meant  the  triumph  of  the  Platen  faction  and  the  public 
humiliation  of  the  Princess.  To  her  proud  spirit  it  was 
worse  than  death. 

Thus  thrust  from  her  father's  gates,  Sophie  Dorothea 
set  out  on  her  return  journey,  her  heart  full  of  anger 
and  revolt.  A  message  had  been  sent  to  Celle  that  the 
Elector  and  Electress  would  be  happy  to  receive  her  at 
Herrenhausen,  where  they  were  now  staying.  The  road 
from  Celle  ran  past  the  gates  of  Herrenhausen,  which 
was  situated  about  a  mile  from  Hanover.  It  was  expected 
and  required  by  the  rigid  etiquette  of  German  courts  that 
the  Princess  on  her  return  should  call  and  pay  her  respects 
to  the  head  of  the  family  (appearances  must  be  kept  up  at 
all  hazard)  ;  and,  advised  from  Celle  of  the  day  and  hour 
she  would  return,  the  Elector  and  Electress  and  their  court 
assembled  to  receive  her  with  due  formality.  The  courtiers, 
who  knew  all  the  circumstances  of  the  case,  were  on  the  tip- 
toe of  expectation  to  see  how  the  Princess  would  demean 
herself.  Countess  Platen,  more  eager  than  the  rest,  and 
anxious  to  triumph  over  her  fallen  foe,  craned  her  head 
out  of  the  window  to  see  if  the  Princess  were  coming,  just 
as  she  and  her  sister,  Madame  Weyhe,  had  done  once 
before,  when  Sophie  Dorothea  made  her  first  entry  into 
Hanover  as  a  bride  on  the  occasion  of  her  ill-omened 
marriage.  The  Princess's  carriage  was  heard  approaching,. 


THE  GATHERING  STORM  339 

the  outriders  were  already  visible,  the  gates  of  Herren- 
hausen  were  thrown  open,  when  to  every  one's  astonish- 
ment the  Princess  leant  forward  and,  without  stopping  the 
carriage,  bade  the  coachman  drive  as  fast  as  he  could  past 
Herrenhausen  into  Hanover. 

The  astonishment  of  the  courtiers,  and  the  indignation 
of  the  Elector  and  Electress  at  seeing  themselves  thus 
publicly  flouted,  knew  no  bounds.  One  must  understand 
the  rigidity  of  German  court  etiquette  at  that  period  to 
appreciate  the  enormity  of  the  Princess's  offence ;  it  was 
not  merely  an  act  of  discourtesy,  but  one  of  revolt.  It  is 
impossible  not  to  sympathise  with  the  spirit  which  dictated 
this  act,  for  even  if  there  had  been  no  other  reason,  the 
presence  of  Countess  Platen  was  sufficient  to  justify  it. 

Arrived  at  Hanover,  the  Princess  went  at  once  to  her 
apartments  in  the  Leine  Schloss,  and  there,  attended  only 
by  the  faithful  Knesebeck,  who  followed  her  mistress  still, 
albeit  with  fear  and  trembling,  she  gave  out  that  she  was 
ill,  and  steadily  refused  to  see  any  one.  Her  conduct  was 
at  once  reported  to  Celle,  and  those  in  authority  were  at  a 
loss  to  know  what  to  do.  The  situation  was  one  which 
certainly  could  not  be  maintained  for  long,  and  the  excuse 
that  the  Princess  made  was  seized  upon  to  deceive  the 
world,  and  a  polite  fiction  was  circulated  to  the  effect  that 
the  Princess's  health  had  broken  down  during  the  journey 
to  Hanover,  and  she  would  shortly  return  and  join  her 
parents  at  Wienhausen.  We  cannot  but  admire  the  de- 
corum with  which  these  Hanoverian  princes  tried  to  hush 
up  their  family  scandals.  Ill  the  Princess  undoubtedly 
was,  but  it  was  an  illness  of  the  mind  rather  than  of  the 
body.  She  was  sick  unto  death  of  Hanover  and  its  sur- 
roundings, and,  all  the  time  when  she  was  refusing  to  see 
any  one,  she  was  maturing  a  desperate  plan  of  flight. 


22 


CHAPTER  XXIII. 

THE  MURDER  OF  KONIGSMARCK. 

How  do  men  die  ?     But  I,  so  trapped  alive — 
O,  I  shall  die  a  dog's  death,  and  no  man's. 

SWINBURNE. 

A  DAY  or  two  after  the  Princess  returned  to  Hanover 
Konigsmarck  came  back  from  Dresden.  He  had  been 
kept  informed  of  her  movements,  and,  as  her  affairs  grew 
more  desperate,  the  question  of  flight  was  freely  discussed 
in  their  letters.  Konigsmarck  at  first  advised  the  Princess 
to  fly  to  France,  change  her  religion,  and  throw  herself 
on  the  protection  of  the  French  King.  France  was  her 
mother's  countty,  and  the  Duchess  of  Celle  was  known  to 
be  friendly  towards  France,  and  even  suspected  of  leaning 
to  Popery.  The  Princess,  too,  through  Balati,  the  French 
envoy,  had  exchanged  compliments  with  Louis  XIV.,  and 
had  distinctly  favoured  the  French  party  in  opposition  to 
her  husband,  who  always  upheld  William  and  the  Alliance. 
In  the  days  gone  by,  when  the  Duchess  of  Celle  and  her 
daughter  were  supposed  to  have  some  influence,  they  had 
received  many  valuable  jewels  from  the  French  King.  A 
change  of  religion  would  effectually  exclude  the  Princess 
from  the  court  of  Hanover,  now  deeply  pledged  on  the 
Protestant  side,  and  constitute  a  claim  on  the  munificence 
of  Louis,  who  liberally  pensioned  distinguished  converts, 
such  as,  for  instance,  the  late  Duke  John  Frederick  of 
Hanover  and  King  James  of  England.  There  was  no 
reason  why  he  should  not  pension  the  Princess  as  well,  as 
she  would  certainly  be  a  thorn  in  the  side  of  his  adversaries. 
Konigsmarck,  too,  was  favourably  known  at  the  court  of 
Versailles,  and  were  he  to  enter  the  French  service  he  might 
hope  for  promotion  and  a  career  with  honour. 

Undoubtedly  there  was  a  good  deal  to  be  said  in  favour 
of  the  Princess's  flight  to  France,  but  there  was  also  much 

34° 


THE  MURDER  OF  KONIGSMARCK  341 

against  it.  Such  a  step  would  cut  off  Sophie  Dorothea 
irrevocably  from  the  House  of  Brunswick-Luneburg — not 
only  from  Hanover,  which  she  ardently  desired,  but  from 
Celle,  which  she  did  not  desire,  and  from  all  future  favours 
from  her  father.  The  Duke  of  Celle  all  his  life  long  had 
been  the  stoutest  opponent  of  France,  and  for  his  daughter 
to  go  over  to  his  enemies  would  be  unpardonable  treason  ; 
it  would  mean  disinheritance  without  hope  of  reinstatement. 
The  Princess,  too,  though  not  a  deeply  religious  woman, 
was  attached  to  the  faith  in  which  she  had  been  brought 
up,  and  had  no  wish  to  change  it,  and  without  a  change  of 
religion  there  was  no  hope  for  her  in  France.  Moreover, 
Elizabeth  Charlotte,  the  Duchess  of  Orleans,  who  was  the 
devoted  niece  and  correspondent  of  the  Electress  Sophia, 
occupied  a  prominent  position  at  the  French  court.  She 
hated  the  Duchess  of  Celle  and  the  Electoral  Princess,  and 
would  undoubtedly  do  everything  in  her  power  to  make 
things  unpleasant  for  Sophie  Dorothea.  Lastly,  and  this 
obstacle  was  insuperable,  the  Princess  had  not  enough 
money  to  fly  to  France  and  to  maintain  herself  there  for 
any  time ;  it  was  a  long  way,  and  she  ran  considerable  risk 
of  being  overtaken.  So  she  dismissed  the  French  plan,  and 
turned  her  thoughts  to  one  far  more  practicable — flight  to 
Wolfenbiittel. 

Here  the  ground  was  well  prepared.  Knesebeck  had  a 
married  sister  in  Brunswick,  one  Frau  von  Metsch,  whose 
husband  was  in  Konigsmarck's  service  and  to  whom  many 
letters  were  sent  at  this  time.  She  doubtless  acted  as  an 
agent  between  the  Princess  and  Duke  Antony  Ulrich.  The 
strained  relations  between  the  Princess  and  the  electoral 
court  were  well  known  to  Antony  Ulrich.  She  was  his 
cousin  ;  he  had  known  her  from  childhood  ;  she  was  nearly 
being  allied  to  his  house  by  the  closest  ties,  and  he  was  her 
mother's  earliest  friend.  In  this,  her  hour  of  trial,  he  com- 
municated to  her  his  sympathy  and  assured  her  of  his  support, 
more  especially  as  he  saw  in  these  family  dissensions  some- 
thing which  might  be  turned  to  his  advantage  and  could  not 
fail  to  humiliate  the  Elector.  The  union  of  Hanover  and 
Celle  had  been  a  hard  blow  to  him,  and  anything  which 
tended  to  disunion  was  in  his  favour. 

Finding  every  other  means  of  escape  from  a  position 
which  had  become  intolerable  cut  off,  the  Princess  resolved 


342   THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

to  fly  to  Wolfenbiittel,  and  place  herself  under  the  protection 
of  her  cousin  and  old  friend.  The  journey  was  short  and 
inexpensive,  and  her  escape  from  Hanover  to  Wolfenbiittel 
would  not  be  as  irrevocable  as  flight  to  France ;  it  would 
not  involve  a  change  of  religion,  or  make  an  unbridgeable 
gulf  between  herself  and  her  father,  for  Wolfenbuttel's 
quarrel  was  not  so  much  with  Celle  as  with  Hanover. 
Once  there,  Duke  Antony  Ulrich  would  be  sure  to  plead 
in  her  favour,  and  would  certainly  not  give  her  up  to  the 
tender  mercies  of  the  Hanoverian  Court.  It  would  be 
better  for  Konigsmarck  too,  for  Brunswick- Wolfenbiittel 
was  allied  with  Denmark  and  Sweden,  and  Konigsmarck,  a 
Swedish  subject,  had  only  to  throw  in  his  lot  with  his  King 
to  be  received  back  into  favour.  Of  course,  from  the  point 
of  view  of  the  Hanoverian  government,  the  Princess's  flight 
to  Wolfenbiittel  would  be  a  treason  even  worse  than  flight 
to  France,  for  all  relations  between  the  two  courts  had  long 
since  been  broken  off  and  Brunswick-Wolfenbiittel  was  a 
declared  enemy  of  the  electoral  house.  Putting  Konigs- 
marck out  of  the  question  altogether,  the  Princess's  policy 
was  unpardonable  in  the  eyes  of  the  Hanoverian  govern- 
ment :  she  first  revolted  and  then  plotted  treason. 

Unfortunately  for  the  best  interests  of  the  Princess, 
Konigsmarck  was  a  factor  in  the  situation.  He  had  come 
back  to  Hanover  almost  simultaneously  with  the  Princess, 
— an  audacious  act  in  itself,  for  he  was  in  disgrace  at  court 
on  account  of  her.  Ostensibly  he  had  returned  to  attend 
to  some  necessary  business  ;  in  reality  he  came  back  for 
the  one  and  only  purpose  of  aiding  the  Princess  in  her  flight 
to  Wolfenbuttel.  He  still  held  the  post  of  colonel  in  the 
Hanoverian  guards,  and  it  was  necessary  that  he  should 
resign  it  formally,  since  he  had  accepted  a  commission  in 
the  Saxon  service.  But,  during  the  few  days  which  elapsed 
between  his  return  to  Hanover  and  July  I,  he  took  no  steps 
to  resign  his  commission,  nor  did  he  show  himself  in  public. 
He  went  straight  to  his  house  and  lived  there  in  retirement, 
occupying  himself  mainly  with  arranging  his  affairs  and 
sorting  his  papers.  The  Princess  was  also  in  retirement  in 
her  apartments  at  the  palace,  still  insubordinate,  and  re- 
fusing to  see  any  one  on  the  plea  of  illness.  She,  too,  was 
very  busy  in  much  the  same  way.  Communications  passed 
between  the  lovers  during  these  few  days,  but  they  were 


THE  MURDER  OF  KONIGSMARCK  343 

not  able  to  arrange  a  meeting.  The  situation  was  danger- 
ous, far  more  so  than  they  seemed  to  realise.  It  is  true 
that  they  knew  they  were  watched,  but  they  hoped  to 
evade  the  spies  as  they  had  often  done  before.  But  then 
it  had  been  convenient  for  their  enemies  to  turn  a  blind 
eye  to  the  intrigue  ;  now  they  were  on  the  alert.  Every 
movement  was  observed  and  reported  to  headquarters. 
Konigsmarck  was  watched  day  and  night,  the  Princess 
also ;  and  had  they  reflected  they  must  have  seen  the 
danger  they  were  running.  The  imprudence  and  reckless- 
ness of  their  proceedings  seem  almost  incredible ;  they 
rushed  right  on  to  their  doom.  As  the  Princess  had 
settled  on  flight,  it  would  have  been  wise  for  her  to  have 
dissembled  a  little  ;  but  she  and  Konigsmarck  provoked 
suspicion — she  by  her  rebellion  and  threats  of  desperate 
proceedings,  and  he  by  returning  to  Hanover.  There  was 
really  no  need  for  him  to  have  come  back  at  all.  He 
could  have  met  the  Princess  at  Wolfenbiittel,  and  she 
could  have  travelled  there  alone  almost  as  easily  as  she 
made  the  journey  to  Celle.  But  despite  every  warning 
and  the  dictates  of  common  prudence,  Konigsmarck  came 
back  into  the  very  hands  of  his  enemies,  who  were  seeking 
an  opportunity  to  destroy  him. 

The  opportunity  was  not  long  in  coming. 

On  the  evening  of  Sunday,  July  I,  1694,  Konigsmarck 
received  a  note  from  the  Princess,  written  in  a  feigned  hand,1 
asking  him  to  come  to  her  that  night  without  fail,  and  ap- 
pointing the  hour  and  mentioning  the  signal.  In  obedience 
to  this  summons,  long  expected,  the  same  night,  between 
ten  and  eleven  o'clock,  he  stole  out  of  his  house  and  made 
his  way  towards  the  Leine  Schloss.  It  afterwards  tran- 
spired that  his  servants  noticed  him  leave  the  house ;  they 
had  also  observed  during  the  day  that  he  was  restless  and 
disturbed.  But  he  thought  he  was  unobserved,  and,  as 

1  The  Princess  asserted  later  that  this  note  was  not  hers  at  all ;  it  was  a 
forgery  written  by  the  Countess  Platen  as  a  snare,  and  she  was  greatly  sur- 
prised when  Konigsmarck  appeared  and  showed  her  the  note.  She  gave  it 
back  to  him  saying  that  she  had  not  written  it.  Knesebeck,  on  the  other 
hand,  in  her  statement  asserts  that  the  Princess  had  appointed  to  meet 
Konigsmarck.  It  is  therefore  impossible  to  credit  the  poor  Princess's  denial, 
which  was  natural  enough  under  the  circumstances,  but  cannot  be  believed. 
If  she  had  not  expected  Konigsmarck,  how  came  he  to  be  admitted  to  her 
chamber  at  that  hour  of  the  night  ? 


344   THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

usual  on  the  occasions  of  these  stolen  meetings  with  the 
Princess,  he  adopted  what  was  practically  a  disguise.  He 
wore  a  pair  of  shabby  old  summer  trousers,  a  much-worn 
white  jacket,  very  short,  and  a  brown  cloak.  There  is  a 
conflict  of  testimony  as  to  whether  he  was  armed  or  un- 
armed ;  but  the  burden  of  the  evidence  goes  to  prove  that 
he  was  girt  with  a  short  sword,  which  was  part  of  the 
ordinary  equipment,  but  for  practical  purposes  he  was 
unarmed.  Why  should  he  be  armed  ?  He  had  had  many 
stolen  interviews  with  the  Princess  before,  and  had  come  to 
no  hurt.1 

Arrived  at  the  Leine  Schloss,  Konigsmarck  went  round 
to  the  wing  where  the  Princess's  apartments  were  situated 
and  gave  the  signal,  whistling  [probably]  a  few  bars  of  a 
well-known  air.  The  signal  was  replied  to  [probably]  by 
a  light  in  the  window,  and  a  minute  later  he  was  admitted 
through  the  postern  by  Knesebeck  and  conducted  to  the 
Princess's  chamber.  Here  La  Confidente  withdrew  and  the 
lovers  were  left  alone.  They  had  not  seen  one  another  for 
more  than  three  months,  and  now  met  under  the  shadow  of 
great  peril.  We  may  imagine  their  meeting — the  Princess's 
tearful  reproaches  anent  her  lover's  conduct  at  Dresden,  his 
fervent  denials,  and  her  sweet  forgiveness ;  the  tears,  the 
vows,  and  the  broken  words.  But  they  had  other  things 
before  them  than  loving  words  and  rapturous  embraces ; 
the  time  was  short  and  there  was  much  to  say  and  much 
to  do  concerning  the  flight  they  had  planned  for  the  morrow. 
Both  were  agreed  that  the  situation  was  intolerable,  and 
could  last  no  longer ;  both  were  ready  to  make  the  fatal 
plunge  and  brave  the  consequences.  There  could  hardly 
be  a  more  favourable  time  than  the  present,  so  it  seemed 

1  From  this  point  to  the  end  of  the  chapter  a  curtain  of  impenetrable 
darkness  descends  and  no  gleam  of  light  can  be  gathered  from  historical 
documents.  All  the  English  envoy's  despatches  which  might  contain  refer- 
ence to  the  tragedy  are  destroyed.  The  account  which  follows  is  built  upon 
the  Roman  Octavia  by  Duke  Antony  Ulrich  of  Wolfenbiittel ;  Cramer's 
Memoirs  of  Aurora  von  Konigsmarck,  a  work  which  contains  many  genuine 
documents  and  some  spurious  ones;  Schulenburg's  Herzogin  von  Ahlden,  a 
critical,  honest  and  painstaking  book,  and  Miiller's  Sophia  Dorothea,  a  work 
which,  though  not  trustworthy,  compels  consideration  from  the  fact  that  the 
author  was  private  secretary  to  the  late  Duke  of  Cambridge  when  Regent  of 
Hanover,  and  had  access  to  the  Guelph  domestic  papers.  Moreover  this 
account  of  the  catastrophe  is  the  one  that  gained  acceptance  at  European 
courts  and  is  supported  by  tradition. 


345 

to  them  :  the  Electoral  Prince  was  at  Berlin,  the  Electress 
at  Herrenhausen ;  there  was  no  one  of  all  the  Hanoverian 
Royal  Family  in  Hanover  but  the  old  Elector,  weak  and 
ailing,  in  a  far-off  wing  of  the  palace ;  time  and  circum- 
stances alike  were  favourable  for  flight. 

But  they  had  forgotten  one  whose  hatred,  like  her  ven- 
geance, never  slumbered.  Countess  Platen,  enraged  against 
Konigsmarck  by  his  scandalous  gossip  about  her  at  Dres- 
den, had  lost  for  the  time  the  tendresse  for  him  which  had 
hitherto  held  her  back  from  extreme  measures.  The  Prin- 
cess she  detested  and  despised,  and  would  have  killed  her 
rather  than  see  her  triumphant  in  Konigsmarck's  affections. 
The  return  of  Konigsmarck  from  Dresden,  combined  with 
the  Princess's  sudden  revolt  against  all  authority,  made  her 
suspicious  that  something  unusual  was  going  on,  and  for 
the  last  week  she  had  doubled  her  spies,  and  every  move- 
ment of  both  had  been  reported  to  her.  No  sooner,  there- 
fore, had  Konigsmarck  let  himself  out  of  his  house  that 
night  and  stolen  away  disguised  under  cover  of  the  darkness, 
than  he  was  tracked  to  the  palace  and  seen  to  enter  the 
Princess's  apartments.  The  quarry  was  run  to  earth  at 
last.  Information  was  at  once  given  to  Countess  Platen, 
who  in  hot  haste,  regardless  alike  of  the  hour  and  place, 
repaired  to  the  Elector's  apartments,  and  told  him,  with 
much  agitation  and  many  gestures,  that  Konigsmarck  was 
-even  now  in  the  chamber  of  the  Electoral  Princess,  and  she 
besought  him  to  take  immediate  steps  to  arrest  and  punish 
the  offenders. 

The  picture  of  Countess  Platen  posing  as  a  champion 
of  outraged  virtue  might  have  afforded  the  cynical  old 
Elector  some  amusement  under  other  circumstances,  but 
this  came  too  near  home.  Though  of  easy  morality,  and 
by  no  means  inclined  to  be  hard  on  offences  of  this  nature, 
the  audacity  of  Konigsmarck  enraged  him  beyond  measure. 
He  was  already  angry  with  the  Princess  because  she  had 
flouted  his  authority,  and  he  determined  to  make  her  feel 
the  weight  of  it  now.  When  he  had  relieved  his  feelings 
by  a  few  round  oaths,  he  declared  his  resolve  of  going  in 
person  to  the  Princess's  chamber  and  surprising  the  lovers ; 
but  Countess  Platen  threw  herself  in  his  way  and  entreated 
him  not  to  go.  It  would  certainly,  she  pleaded,  lead  to 
•disturbance,  and  probably  result  in  a  public  scandal.  The 


346   THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

great  thing  was  to  keep  an  affair  of  this  kind  from  being- 
known,  and  if  His  Highness  would  leave  the  matter  to- 
her,  she  would  find  a  way  to  arrest  Konigsmarck  quietly, 
and  then  the  Elector  might  punish  the  delinquents  at  his 
leisure,  and  far  more  effectually.  The  first  burst  of  his 
rage  being  over,  the  easy-going  Elector  gave  way.  He 
hated  scenes  and  he  hated  trouble,  and  so  he  agreed  to- 
shift  the  disagreeable  task  upon  the  Countess,  who  was 
only  too  ready  to  undertake  it.  At  her  suggestion  he 
signed  a  warrant  to  the  Commandant  of  the  palace  guard, 
authorising  him  to  give  the  Countess  Platen  four  hal- 
berdiers, who  were  to  accompany  her  and  obey  her  in  all 
things  without  question.  That  the  Elector  had  nothing 
more  in  his  mind  than  the  arrest  of  Konigsmarck  is  evident 
from  the  fact  that  he  said  to  the  Countess,  with  a  touch  of 
malice,  he  was  sure  his  colonel  of  the  guards  was  safe  in 
her  hands,  as  he  was  so  good-looking. 

Armed  with  the  Elector's  sign-manual,  the  Countess 
went  down  to  the  guard-room  and  obtained  four  trusty 
halberdiers.  After  she  had  given  them  drink  and  sworn, 
them  to  secrecy,  she  led  the  way  through  the  dark  cor- 
ridors of  the  great  rambling  palace  to  the  wing  occupied 
by  the  Electoral  Princess. 

The  Leine  Schloss,  or  Royal  Palace  of  Hanover,  has- 
been  considerably  altered  since  that  fatal  night ;  but  the 
walls  are  still  standing,  and  it  is  easy,  even  now,  to  follow 
the  original  plan  of  the  castle.  The  Electoral  Princess 
occupied  a  suite  of  rooms  overlooking  the  river  Leine,. 
then  spanned  by  a  drawbridge,  now  by  a  permanent  way, 
A  wide  corridor  ran  from  her  apartments,  which  still  re- 
mains. This  corridor  touches  at  one  end  a  magnificent 
hall,  known  as  the  rittersaal,  or  knights'  hall,  and  there 
was  also  a  vestibule,  or  inner  hall,  hard  by. 

By  the  door  of  the  rittersaal  the  Countess  paused,  and 
peered  down  the  long  corridor  leading  to  the  Princess's 
apartments.  There  was  no  sound  to  be  heard,  but  a  faint 
glimmer  of  light  beneath  the  door  showed  her  that  the 
Princess  was  still  astir.  The  thought  that  Konigsmarck 
was  at  this  moment  in  her  hated  rival's  arms  excited 
Countess  Platen  beyond  control.  She  turned  to  the  four 
desperadoes,  and  ordered  them  to  lie  in  ambush  and  await 
her  signal,  and  then  rush  out  and  take  the  first  man  who- 


THE  MURDER  OF  KONIGSMARCK  347 

passed,  at  all  hazards,  dead  or  alive.  The  halberdiers 
concealed  themselves  under  the  shadow  of  the  huge  pro- 
jecting chimneypiece  of  the  rittersaal.1  The  Countess- 
withdrew  to  the  vestibule  hard  by,  and  there  waited  for 
her  prey. 

She  had  some  time  to  wait,  for  the  lovers,  unconscious 
of  danger,  had  so  much  to  say  that  the  hours  flew  by  un- 
heeded, and  still  they  were  absorbed  in  one  another.  They 
discussed  every  detail  of  the  escape  on  the  morrow,  and  re- 
discussed  every  precaution  against  discovery.  They  would 
have  talked  till  dawn  had  not  Eleonore  Knesebeck  inter- 
rupted them  and  called  attention  to  the  fact  that  it  was 
high  time  to  put  an  end  to  the  conversation.  Still  the 
lovers,  perchance  with  the  presentiment  of  the  coming 
peril,  were  loth  to  part,  until  at  length  Knesebeck  almost 
forced  Konigsmarck  out  of  the  chamber.  With  a  last  fond 
embrace  he  bade  the  Princess  farewell  until  the  morrow, 
bidding  her  be  of  good  courage,  for  the  hour  was  at  hand 
when  they  would  part  no  more.  Of  a  truth  it  was  their 
last  parting. 

La  Confidente  conducted  Konigsmarck  to  the  outer 
door  of  the  Princess's  apartments,  and  there  left  him. 
There  was  no  light,  but  he  knew  his  way  so  well  that  he 
could  find  it  in  the  dark,  so  he  walked  softly  down  the 
long  corridor,  humming  a  tune  under  his  breath.  It  was 
characteristic  of  the  man  and  his  careless,  dare-devil  spirit 
that  he  treated  the  affair  so  lightly.  He  was  embarked  on 
a  venture  which  would  revolutionise  his  whole  future  life, 
which  would  set  every  court  in  Europe  by  the  ears,  and 
involved  the  happiness  of  the  woman  he  loved  ;  yet  it  all 
weighed  so  lightly  with  him  that  he  left  her  humming  a 
tune.  Yet  elopement  with  an  Electoral  Princess  was  a 
somewhat  serious  undertaking  even  in  those  days. 

A  few  steps  brought  Konigsmarck  to  the  door  in  the 
left-hand  corner  of  the  corridor  by  which  he  had  been 
admitted,  opposite  the  rittersaal.  The  door  had  purposely 
been  left  unbarred  for  his  exit ;  it  was  now  locked.  The 

1  I  visited  the  scene  of  the  murder  in  1898.  This  chimneypiece  still  re- 
mains, elaborately  carved  and  wrought,  a  splendid  monument  of  masonry. 
The  rittersaal,  too,  has  little  changed,  except  that  it  was  redecorated  in  the 
early  part  of  this  century.  The  long  corridor  has  been  laid  down  with  parquet,, 
but  the  attendants  show  the  spot  where  the  murder  was  committed. 


348   THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

tune  died  on  his  lips,  and  he  turned  to  retrace  his  steps. 
At  that  moment  the  four  desperadoes  sprang  from  their 
hiding-place  and  rushed  upon  him  with  their  weapons. 
The  unfortunate  man  realised  that  he  was  caught  in  a 
trap ;  but,  though  taken  by  surprise  and  comparatively 
unarmed,  he  defended  himself  doughtily.  For  a  few 
minutes  there  was  a  fierce  conflict,  during  which  two  of 
his  adversaries  were  wounded,  and  though  Konigsmarck 
was  fighting  in  the  dark  against  four  armed  men,  the 
result  seemed  uncertain  until  his  sword  snapped  in  twain. 
This  placed  him  at  the  mercy  of  his  assailants,  and  he  fell, 
severely  wounded  in  the  head  by  a  cut  from  a  battle-axe, 
and  run  through  the  body  by  a  sword.  Even  as  he  fell 
his  cry  was,  "  Spare  the  Princess !  Spare  the  innocent 
Princess !  "  and  then  he  swooned. 

The  men  bound  and  dragged  him,  all  bleeding  as  he 
was,  into  the  vestibule,  where  Countess  Platen  awaited  her 
victim.  By  the  light  of  a  feeble  candle  she  bent  over  him 
and  peered  fearfully  into  his  face.  Things  were  worse 
than  she  had  bargained  for,  and  at  first  it  seemed  that  he 
was  already  dead.  But  no  ;  he  opened  his  eyes.  At  the 
sight  of  his  enemy's  malignant  face  Konigsmarck  realised 
that  he  was  a  victim  of  her  hate,  and  he  rallied  all  his 
ebbing  strength  to  curse  her  bitterly  for  the  foul  thing  she 
was.  His  lips  were  shut  by  the  foot  of  his  murderess, 
who,  pretending  to  slip  on  his  blood,  trod  by  design  upon 
his  mouth.  Too  weak  to  resent  the  outrage,  Konigsmarck 
swooned  once  more.  He  recovered  consciousness  again, 
only  to  protest  with  feeble  tongue  and  broken  words  the 
innocence  of  the  Princess.  Then  his  head  fell  back,  and 
he  died  with  her  name  on  his  lips. 

At  first  Countess  Platen  refused  to  believe  that  he  was 
dead,  and  made  every  effort  to  restore  him  to  life,  pouring 
cordial  down  his  throat,  rubbing  his  hands,  and  binding  up 
his  wounds  ;  but  when  she  saw  it  was  too  late  her  anxiety 
gave  place  to  terror  and  perhaps  to  remorse.  She  cherished 
a  sort  of  tigress's  passion  for  the  murdered  man,  though 
she  would  rather  see  him  dead  at  her  feet,  as  he  now  was, 
than  in  the  arms  of  her  rival.  When  she  gave  the  word  to 
take  him,  dead  or  alive,  she  hardly  contemplated  so  literal 
an  obedience  to  her  orders,  and  she  bitterly  upbraided  the 
soldiers  for  their  blunder  and  excess  of  zeal.  The  assassins 


THE    MURDER    OF    KONIGSMARCK. 

From  an  old  print. 


THE  MURDER  OF  KONIGSMARCK  349 

were  no  less  frightened  than  the  Countess  when  they  re-, 
alised  that  the  murdered  man  was  none  other  than  the 
popular  Count  Konigsmarck.  The  Countess  did  not  fail 
to  take  advantage  of  their  consternation  by  declaring  that 
the  Elector  would  of  a  surety  hang  the  lot  of  them,  if 
they  did  not  swear  the  Count's  death  was  due  wholly  to 
his  own  desperate  resistance.  This  they  at  once  vowed, 
and  declared  that  in  the  darkness  they  could  not  see  what 
they  were  doing ;  they  acted  only  on  the  defensive,  and 
he  rushed  blindly  upon  their  weapons.  The  Countess 
rehearsed  them  carefully  in  this  story,  and  made  them 
promise  to  testify  the  same,  separately  and  collectively,, 
to  the  Elector. 

The  Countess  then  repaired  to  the  Elector's  apartments, 
and  with  many  tears  and  much  trepidation  told  him  of  the 
fatal  mishap,  which  she  ascribed  wholly  to  Konigsmarck's 
recklessness.  The  Elector  was  aghast  at  what  had  occurred 
and  greatly  enraged  at  the  way  the  Countess  had  abused 
his  authority.  He  would  have  punished  Konigsmarck  for 
his  presumption  by  arrest  and  ignominious  dismissal  from 
the  Hanoverian  service,  but  he  never  contemplated  his 
murder.  Cruelty  and  assassination  were  not  among  the 
vices  of  Ernest  Augustus,  and  throughout  his  reign  no 
deed  of  violence  could  be  laid  to  his  charge.  Moreover,, 
he  foresaw  that  by  this  wicked  crime  the  very  thing  he  had 
most  desired  to  avoid — publicity— would  be  brought  about, 
a  very  painful  family  scandal  would  be  dragged  before  the 
world,  and  he  could  not  hope  to  escape  the  odium  which 
was  sure  to  accrue.  Konigsmarck  was  known  throughout 
Europe  ;  he  had  many  powerful  friends  at  the  courts  of 
Saxony,  Sweden,  and  Denmark,  possibly  England  and 
France  too  :  some  of  these  would  certainly  raise  a  storm 
when  they  heard  of  the  foul  manner  of  his  death.  Ernest 
Augustus  in  his  old  age  did  not  care  to  burden  his  con- 
science with  a  crime  which  would  only  bring  harm  to  him, 
and  disrepute  to  his  house.  In  fact,  it  was  worse  than  a 
crime  ;  it  was  a  stupid  blunder,  which  when  known  would 
involve  the  electoral  court  in  no  end  of  difficulties.  So  the 
old  Elector  stormed  and  raged  at  his  favourite,  cursing  her 
in  no  measured  terms,  and  vowing  he  would  never  forgive 
her.  She  was  astounded  at  his  fury.  Never  in  all  the 
long  years  of  her  ascendency  had  she  seen  him  like  this, 


350   THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

and,  indeed,  her  influence  over  him  was  never  the  same 
after  that  night.  It  was  with  much  difficulty  that  she 
contrived  to  bring  the  Elector  to  something  like  reason. 
She  pointed  out  the  uselessness  of  mere  denunciations, 
bringing  to  bear  the  unanswerable  argument  that  the  man 
was  dead  and  nothing  could  call  him  back  to  life. 

Meanwhile  the  hours  were  slipping  by  and  some  action 
must  be  taken  unless  Konigsmarck's  body  were  to  be  left 
in  the  vestibule  all  night  and  discovered  in  the  morning. 
Countess  Platen  pointed  out  that  the  evil  consequences  the 
Elector  dreaded  were  dependent  upon  the  Count's  death 
being  known,  and  they  might  all  be  avoided  if  it  were 
concealed.  Why  should  it  not  be  concealed  ?  No  one 
had  seen  him  enter  the  palace  except  her  trusted  spies, 
and  no  one  had  seen  him  inside  its  walls  except  herself, 
the  halberdiers,  the  Princess,  and  Knesebeck.  For  herself 
and  the  soldiers  she  could  answer,  and  there  was  an  easy 
way  of  stopping  the  mouths  of  the  Princess  and  her  waiting- 
woman. 

The  Elector  listened,  ever  ready  to  avoid  a  difficulty, 
and  presently  intimated  that,  since  she  had  got  him  into 
the  mess,  she  must  get  him  out  of  it.  This  the  Countess 
•expressed  herself  as  ready  and  able  to  do.  The  Elector 
then  reluctantly  accompanied  her  to  the  room  where  the 
murdered  man  still  lay,  guarded  by  his  assassins.  These 
men  l  were  sworn,  under  penalty  of  death,  not  to  disclose 
a  word  of  their  night's  work.  Konigsmarck's  pockets  were 
searched  and  the  contents  handed  over  to  the  Elector. 
Then  the  corpse  was  dragged  to  a  hole,  or  treppe,  hard  by, 
thrust  down,  covered  with  quicklime,  and  the  place  walled 
up.  The  blood-stains  were  carefully  washed  from  the  floor, 
and  every  trace  of  the  murder  was  obliterated.  The  men 
must  have  worked  very  quickly  and  expeditiously.  No 
•one  in  the  sleeping  palace  was  aroused,  and  everything  was 

1  Of  these  halberdiers  little  is  known.  One  was  named  Bushmann,  and 
is  said  to  have  made  a  confession  on  his  deathbed  to  a  priest  named  Cramer 
of  his  part  in  the  murder.  He  is  said  to  have  been  so  badly  wounded  in  the 
struggle  by  Konigsmarck  that  he  could  do  nothing  for  six  weeks,  but  the 
authority  for  this  statement  is  doubtful.  Local  tradition  gives  the  name  of 
another  of  these  men  as  Luders,  who,  from  the  date  of  the  crime,  became 
•  the  owner  of  an  estate  given  him  by  the  Hanoverian  government.  His 
descendants  until  recently  lived  at  Hanover,  and  may  be  living  there  still  for 
aught  I  know,  and  are  well-to-do  people.  Some  information  of  both  these 
men  is  given  in  Cramer's  book  on  Aurora  Konigsmarck. 


THE  MURDER  OF  KONIGSMARCK  351 

completed  before  the  morning  light,  which,  at  that  time  of 
the  year  in  Hanover,  began  to  dawn  soon  after  three  o'clock. 
Thus  perished  miserably,  with  his  body  given  the  sepul- 
ture of  a  dog,  Philip  Christopher,  Count  Konigsmarck,  the 
head  of  a  noble  and  famous  family,  and  one  of  the  most 
brilliant  adventurers  who  strutted  across  the  stage  of  Europe 
in  the  seventeenth  century.  It  may  truly  be  said  of  him 
that  nothing  in  his  life  became  him  so  well  as  the  way  he 
quitted  it.  He  died  bravely,  fighting  against  overwhelming 
odds,  and  he  died  gallantly,  defending  with  his  last  breath 
the  honour  of  the  woman  he  loved.  That  he  loved  the 
Princess,  as  far  as  it  was  in  his  nature  to  love  any  one, 
must  be  admitted  ;  it  was  not  the  highest  kind  of  love,  but 
a  passion  selfish  in  its  essence,  to  which  men  of  his  kind 
are  prone,  very  fierce  while  it  lasted  and  very  real,  but 
probably  not  enduring.  He  made  great  sacrifices  for  her 
sake,  refused  honour,  promotion,  fame,  all  that  men  hold 
dear ;  so  he  must  have  loved  her  after  his  fashion.  That 
he  was  unworthy  of  the  love  she  gave  back  to  him  fourfold 
must  be  admitted  also;  he  was  utterly  unworthy.  Yet  to 
judge  him  fairly  we  must  judge  him  by  the  standards  of 
his  time.  Those  standards  were  not  high  ones.  He  lived 
in  an  age  of  profligacy  and  in  courts  where  laxity  of 
manners  and  morals  were  the  order  of  the  day,  and  he 
was  lax  and  profligate  accordingly.  But  if  he  were  no 
better  he  was  no  worse  than  his  compeers,  and  certainly 
•does  not  deserve  the  censure  which  has  been  heaped  upon 
him  ;  for,  surrounded  as  he  was  by  parasites  and  flatterers, 
the  marvel  is  not  that  he  was  so  bad,  but  that  he  was 
as  good  as  he  was.  The  worst  part  of  his  conduct  was 
his  intrigue  with  Countess  Platen — conduct  impossible  to 
palliate  or  excuse,  and  which  brought  its  own  punishment. 
Otherwise  he  had  his  own  rough  standard  of  honour,  and 
as  far  as  we  can  see  he  acted  up  to  his  lights,  which 
•certainly  were  not  bright  ones.  He  was  a  brave  soldier, 
fearless  in  the  field ;  he  was  open-handed,  generous  to  a 
fault,  and  those  who  knew  him  best  were  greatly  attached 
to  him.  His  sisters  loved  him,  his  servants  were  devoted 
to  him,  and  these  things  speak  in  his  favour.  Of  him  it 
may  be  said  his  vices  were  those  of  his  era,  his  virtues  were 
all  his  own.  He  did  wrong,  let  us  admit  it,  but  he  paid 
the  penalty  with  his  blood. 


CHAPTER-  XXIV. 

THE  RUIN  OF  THE  PRINCESS. 

,i         What  if  my  life  be  all  undone, 

And  all  things  false  below  the  sun, 
Yet  still  I  have  been  true  to  one — 
Most  passionately  true ! 

LADY  ARABELLA  ROMILLY. 

AFTER  Konigsmarck  had  left,  the  Princess  passed  most 
of  the  night  in  packing  up  her  jewels,  sorting  and  burning 
papers,  and  completing  arrangements  for  her  flight.  It 
was  arranged  that,  on  receipt  of  a  note  from  Konigsmarck 
in  the  morning,  the  Princess  and  her  lady-in-waiting  should 
steal  disguised  to  some  quiet  spot  in  the  city,  and  thence 
escape  in  his  coach,  which,  it  afterwards  transpired,  was 
under  orders  to  start  for  Dresden  at  a  moment's  notice. 
Outside  Hanover  the  order  would  have  been  reversed  ;  the 
coachman  would  have  been  told  to  drive  with  all  speed  to 
Wolfenbiittel,  and  once  across  the  Hanoverian  frontier  the 
fugitives  would  have  been  safe  from  pursuit. 

During  the  night  Knesebeck  fancied  that  she  heard 
sounds,  but  thought  nothing  of  them.  Konigsmarck  had 
promised  to  send  the  Princess  word  early  in  the  morning, 
but  when  the  day  wore  on  and  nothing  came  she  grew 
anxious,  and  her  anxiety  increased  when  she  learnt  that 
he  had  not  returned  home  and  his  servants  knew  nothing 
of  his  whereabouts.  His  absence  did  not  trouble  his  ser- 
vants, as  the  Count  was  given  to  nocturnal  adventures  and 
often  remained  away  for  days  together.  But  it  troubled  the 
Princess  greatly,  and  she  began  to  fear  that  some  evil  had 
befallen  him.  Presently  some  one  came  into  the  ante- 
chamber with  the  rumour  that  Konigsmarck  had  fought  a 
duel  wi,th  Count  Lippe,  and  had  been  run  through  the 
body.  Greatly  alarmed,  the  Princess  sent  to  Marshal 
Podevils  to  find  out  if  the  report  were  true,  but  the  Marshal 
said  that  it  was  groundless  and  Konigsmarck  was  doubtless 

352 


THE  RUIN  OF  THE  PRINCESS  353 

safe  and  well.  Later,  when  the  Princess  attempted  to  go 
out,  she  was  informed  that  it  was  the  Elector's  pleasure  she 
should  not  leave  her  apartments,  and  no  reply  was  vouch- 
safed to  her  remonstrance.  -Her  children  were  in  the  habit 
of  coming  to  see  her  daily  at  a  certain  hour,  but  this  day 
they  came  not,  and  when  she  requested  their  presence  she 
was  told  that  the  Elector  had  given  orders  they  were  not 
to  be  admitted,  and  the  young  Prince  George  Augustus 
was  dining  with  the  Elector  alone. 

By  this  time  the  Princess  had  no  doubt  that  she  was 
betrayed,  and  gave  herself  up  to  a  passionate  agony  of 
grief;  while  Knesebeck,  though  greatly  frightened  also, 
vainly  endeavoured  to  comfort  her.  Great  though  the 
Princess's  fear  was,  and  great  though  her  peril,  she  gave 
little  thought  to  her  own  danger  ;  all  her  anxiety  was  for 
Konigsmarck's  safety.  She  was  in  the  same  plight  as  she 
had  written  to  him  long  ago  :  "  I  fear  that  we  are  betrayed. 
I  am  trembling  on  the  edge  of  a  precipice,  but  my  own 
danger  is  the  least  of  my  anxieties.  I  scarcely  think  of  the 
misfortunes  inevitable  and  unavoidable  if  we  are  discov- 
ered :  you,  only,  occupy  my  thoughts."  Then  her  terrors 
were  imaginary  ;  now  they  were  real.  At  the  very  moment 
of  fruition  all  her  hopes  were  dashed  to  the  ground,  and  she 
saw  before  her  nothing  but  ruin  and  lifelong  misery.  To 
all  her  frenzied  inquiries  (and  it  was  no  use  sending  Knese- 
beck for  further  information,  as  that  lady  had  now  been 
ordered  not  to  quit  the  Princess's  chamber)  she  could  elicit 
no  reply ;  and  the  fact  that  she  was  a  prisoner  in  her  apart- 
ments made  her  fear  the  worst.  She  passed  the  night  in 
a  torment  of  anxiety. 

Meantime  the  inquiries  which  Knesebeck  had  started 
set  Konigsmarck's  servants  on  the  same  track,  and  all  sorts 
of  rumours  flew  around  Hanover.  It  was  reported  that  the 
previous  night  Konigsmarck,  surrounded  by  a  bright  light, 
had  been  seen  in  the  palace  through  the  windows,  and  a 
crowd  assembled  outside  the  gates,  to  the  manifest  discom- 
fort of  the  Elector,  who  gave  orders  for  them  to  be  dispersed. 
So  passed  Monday.  The  next  day,  Tuesday,  July  3,  Hilde- 
brand,  Konigsmarck's  secretary,  went  to  Marshal  Podevils 
to  get  information,  if  possible,  of  his  master's  fate,  as  there 
was  now  a  report  that  he  was  imprisoned  in  the  palace. 
Podevils,  who  had  always  been  a  good  friend  of  the 

23 


354   THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

Konigsmarck  family,  and  who  must  have  suspected  that 
there  was  foul  play,  nevertheless  stood  loyally  by  his  master, 
the  Elector,  and  said  :  "  The  Count  will  be  found  somewhere. 
There  is  no  use  making  a  fuss.-  Tell  the  servants  to  keep 
quiet." 

Up  till  now  no  rumour  had  reached  Celle  of  the 
catastrophe,  for  we  find  the  English  envoy,  Cresset, 
writing  on  this  date :  "  The  Electoral  Prince  is  amusing 
himself  in  Berlin,  and  the  Electoral  Princess  is  always  ill 
at  Hanover".1 

The  following  day  Hildebrand  received  a  strong  hint  to 
keep  quiet,  but  nevertheless  he  despatched  a  trusty  servant 
to  Dresden  to  tell  the  Elector  of  Saxony  of  his  master's 
disappearance.  Hardly  had  he  done  so,  than  the  Elector  of 
Hanover  sent  three  officials  to  search  Konigsmarck's  rooms 
thoroughly,  and  particularly  his  writing-table.  Several 
papers  were  seized,  and  the  rooms  and  their  contents  were 
sealed  up  with  the  official  seal.  The  next  day  Hildebrand 
wrote  a  guarded  letter  to  Konigsmarck's  sisters  at  Hamburg 
to  tell  them  that  their  brother  was  missing,  and  asking  for 
directions  as  to  what  he  was  to  do  with  his  effects.  He 
added  that  he  believed  the  Count  was  still  alive,  and  asked 
them  to  wait  eight  days  before  demanding  his  restoration  ; 
but  so  frightened  was  he,  lest  the  Hanoverian  authorities 
might  intercept  this  letter,  that  he  did  not  mention  that 
the  Count's  rooms  had  been  searched  and  his  papers 
seized. 

These  same  papers  sealed  the  doom  of  the  Princess. 
They  were  taken  to  the  Elector,  who  went  through  them 
carefully  with  the  Platens.  They  were  found  to  include 
many  letters  from  Sophie  Dorothea  to  her  lover  from  the 
beginning  of  the  year,  and  especially  during  his  absence  at 
Dresden,  detailing  minutely  the  story  of  her  wrongs.  They 
showed  evidence  of  an  extended  secret  correspondence,  but 
the  letters  before  January  were  missing  and  some  even  since 
that  date.  They  had  passed  into  the  hands  of  Konigsmarck's 
sisters ;  they  are  the  letters  published  in  this  book.2  But 

1  Cresset's  Despatch,  Celle,  July  3,  1694. 

2  We  have  the  following  evidence  of  how  a  portion  of  them  were  rescued, 
even  at  the  eleventh  hour.    In  the  Memoirs  of  Countess  [Aurora]  Konigsmarck, 
Auditeur  Rudiger,  a  confidant  of  Konigsmarck's,  states  that  Metsch,  one 
of  the  intermediaries  employed  by  the  lovers  in  their  secret  correspondence, 


THE  RUIN  OF  THE  PRINCESS  355 

though  these  could  not  be  found,  there  remained  more  than 
enough  to  reveal  everything.  The  cypher  was  easily  made 
out,  and  though  some  of  the  Princess's  letters  were  written 
in  a  disguised  hand,  and  some  transcribed  by  Knesebeck, 
this  did  not  conceal  anything,  but  only  served  to  implicate 
the  lady-in-waiting  in  the  intrigue.  The  letters  contained 
convincing  proofs  of  the  Princess's  passion  for  Konigsmarck 
and  of  her  hatred  of  her  husband  and  the  House  of  Hanover. 
They  contained,  too,  many  severe  reflections  on  her  father's 
harshness,  especially  when  he  refused  to  grant  her  a  separate 
maintenance, — words  written  in  the  heat  of  anger,  and  per- 
haps forgotten  as  soon  as  written,  but  the  writing  remained. 
They  afforded,  also,  full  evidence  of  her  projected  flight  to 
Wolfenbiittel,  in  which  Frau  von  Metsch  and  Knesebeck 
were  implicated — an  act  of  treason  in  itself.  The  old 
Elector  was  incensed  at  these  revelations ;  and  though  he 
might  have  overlooked  the  intimacy  with  Konigsmarck,  for 
he  was  not  hard  on  such  weaknesses,  he  could  not  forgive 
the  intrigue  with  his  arch-enemy  of  Wolfenbiittel.  This 
prejudiced  him  hopelessly  against  the  Princess,  and  made 
him  harden  his  heart  against  any  thought  of  mercy.  It 
was  clear  that  not  only  the  honour,  but  the  safety  of  his 
House  demanded  that  the  Princess  should  be  kept  in 
durance  vile. 

The  Electress  Sophia,  who  had  now  been  informed  of 
the  course  of  events,  had  no  word  strong  enough  to  express 
her  condemnation  of  the  offender.  She  at  last  saw  a 
chance  of  ridding  herself  for  ever  of  the  daughter  of  the 
d'Olbreuse,  and  she  hailed  it  gladly.  There  was  no  mercy 
in  the  heart  of  the  Electress  for  her  erring  daughter-in-law, 
nor  would  she  hearken  to  any  plea  of  extenuating  circum- 
stances. Yet  if  she  had  reflected  she  might  have  seen  that 
it  was  she  who  had  helped  to  drive  the  unhappy  woman  to 

was  with  Secretary  Hildebrand  after  Konigsmarck's  disappearance  on  July  i. 
Hildebrand  asked  him  if  he  knew  of  any  letters  that  might  incriminate  the 
Count.  "  As  I  answered  in  the  affirmative,"  proceeds  Riidiger's  statement, 
"and  added  I  had  seen  a  packet  of  letters  in  the  small  box  on  the  Dresden 
journey,  tied  together  with  a  yellow  ribbon,  of  which  the  Count  took  especial 
care,  the  secretary  requested  me  to  take  the  box  with  me  to  my  room  and 
when  the  packing  up  was  done  to  send  it  unopened  by  the  lackey  Mickel 
to  Celle."  Aurora  and  her  sister  we  know  were  at  Celle  soon  after,  and  we 
are  justified  in  surmising  that  these  letters  reached  them  by  the  hand  of  some 
trustworthy  person,  and  thus  ultimately  came  to  hand  with  the  other  letters. 

23* 


356    THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

these  desperate  steps.  A  little  kindness,  a  little  forbearance, 
a  word  of  advice  at  the  right  season  might  have  saved 
Sophie  Dorothea  :  but  no  help  ever  came  from  the  Electress 
Sophia. 

Meantime  the  Princess,  half-crazed  with  fear  and  sus- 
pense, implored  to  see  the  Elector  and  to  know  whereof 
she  was  accused ;  but  no  answer  was  returned  to  her 
prayers.  She  wrote  long  letters  to  her  parents  at  Celle, 
complaining  bitterly  of  the  indignities  to  which  she  was 
subjected,  and  begging  them  to  come  to  her  succour.  But 
at  Celle  she  had  been  forestalled  by  Count  Platen,  who,  on 
the  discovery  of  the  secret  correspondence,  posted  off  to 
Duke  George  William  under  orders  of  the  Elector.  Count 
Platen  laid  bare  to  the  Duke  the  whole  miserable  story, 
and  last,  but  not  least,  told  him  of  the  Princess's  aspersions 
upon  her  father.  He  showed  him  the  Princess's  own  letters 
to  Konigsmarck,  especially  those  which  animadverted  on 
her  father's  meanness  and  cruelty  in  refusing  her  shelter 
from  her  enemies  at  Hanover. 

The  Duke  of  Celle  was  wounded  to  the  quick  when  he 
read  these  letters,  and  enraged  beyond  measure ;  his  pride 
was  hurt,  too,  by  the  dishonour  done  to  his  House.  His 
standard  of  morality  was  not  a  high  one,  but  he  held  that 
princesses  of  the  House  of  Brunswick-Luneburg  should  be 
above  reproach,  as  in  the  case  of  his  own  wife  and  the 
Electress  Sophia.  The  Electoral  Prince's  many  infidelities 
formed  to  him  no  excuse  for  his  wife  going  astray.  He 
argued  that  however  immoral  a  man  might  be,  he  could  not, 
like  a  woman,  introduce  spurious  offspring  into  the  family, 
or  affect  the  legitimacy  of  the  succession.  The  old  Duke 
prided  himself  on  being  a  blunt,  straightforward  man,  and 
he  had  a  horror  of  intrigue  and  double-dealing.  From 
every  point  of  view  it  seemed  to  him  that  his  daughter's 
conduct  was  as  bad  as  it  could  be — a  view  in  which  Platen 
did  not  hesitate  to  back  him  up. 

With  the  Duchess  of  Celle  it  was  different.  However 
culpable  she  might  deem  her  daughter  to  be,  she  would  not 
forsake  her  in  her  desperate  straits,  for  she  believed  that 
the  Prince  was  far  more  culpable  than  she.  The  Duchess, 
too,  refused  to  believe,  however  imprudent  her  daughter 
might  have  been,  that  she  was  actually  guilty  with 
Konigsmarck.  She  reminded  the  Duke  of  how  alone  and 


THE  RUIN  OF  THE  PRINCESS  357 

unprotected  his  daughter  was,  how  surrounded  by  enemies, 
whose  cruelty  had  goaded  her  to  these  desperate  steps. 
She  urged  that  her  harsh  expressions  about  her  father  were 
written  when  she  was  beside  herself,  and  therefore  allowance 
was  to  be  made  for  them.  Then,  seeing  he  was  still 
obdurate,  she  threw  herself  at  his  feet,  and  with  tears  and 
prayers  besought  him  not  to  desert  his  only  child  in  her 
hour  of  trouble.  But  the  Duke  would  hear  no  reason. 
His  wife  had  long  since  lost  her  influence  over  him,  and  he 
cursed  her,  and  her  daughter,  and  the  day  when  he  first 
brought  her  to  his  house,  and  drove  her  from  him  with 
bitter  words.  The  Duchess  next  went  to  Bernstorff, 
who  had  ever  shown  himself  her  enemy,  and  besought 
his  aid  in  this  terrible  crisis,  offering  him  a  large  sum  of 
money  if  he  would  work  for  the  interests  of  the  Princess 
and  do  what  he  could  to  mitigate  the  Duke's  anger  against 
her. 

Bernstorff,  already  in  the  pay  of  Hanover,  double  traitor 
that  he  was,  did  not  reject  the  proffered  bribe,  and  hypo- 
critically promised  the  Duchess  that  he  would  use  his  best 
exertions.  It  must  have  been  a  triumph  to  his  mean  soul 
to  see  this  proud  and  imperious  woman  humbling  herself 
before  him  as  a  suppliant.  He  knew  well  her  day  was 
over,  that  the  sun  of  her  power  had  set  for  ever :  the  ruin 
of  the  daughter  meant  also,  comparatively  speaking,  the 
ruin  of  the  mother.  The  Duchess  Eleonore  had  indeed 
to  drink  the  cup  of  humiliation  to  the  dregs.  For  years 
she  had  planned  and  laboured  until  she  had  reached 
the  summit  of  her  ambition,  and  now  she  was  hurled 
from  it  by  the  cruellest  blow  that  Fate  could  have  dealt 
her.  Yet  her  mother's  heart  beat  true.  She  had  no  re- 
proaches for  her  erring  daughter,  only  love  ;  and,  bitter 
though  her  fall  was,  it  was  not  half  so  bitter  as  her  im- 
potence to  help. 

Though  the  Duchess  could  do  little,  she  did  not  cease  to 
importune  every  one  concerned — the  Duke,  Bernstorff,  and 
Platen — that  the  Princess  should  be  treated  with  leniency ; 
and  especially  she  pleaded  against  harsh  and  hasty  judg- 
ment. Had  it  not  been  for  those  unlucky  letters  she  might 
have  succeeded,  for  the  Duke's  anger  was  not  wont  to  be 
long-lived ;  but  unfortunately  they  remained,  and  bore 
damning  evidence  against  the  unhappy  Princess.  Count 


358    THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

Platen's  mission  to  the  court  of  Celle  was  first  to  prejudice 
the  Duke  against  his  daughter  and  then  to  take  counsel 
with  him  as  to  what  should  be  done.  There  were  grave 
issues  at  stake,  and  it  was  important  that  whatever  steps 
were  taken  should  be  taken  in  concert  between  the  two 
courts.  Things  had  come  to  a  desperate  pass  ;  but  it  was 
resolved  not  to  abandon  all  efforts  to.  bring  about,  not  a 
reconciliation,  for  that  was  impossible,  but  an  arrangement 
which  might  obviate  the  necessity  of  public  scandal. 

This  task  was  very  difficult,  and  was  rendered  more  so 
by  the  irreconcilable  attitude  of  the  Princess.  She  was 
still  ignorant  of  Konigsmarck's  fate,  but  she  refused  posi- 
tively to  remain  at  Hanover  of  her  own  free  will.  To  keep 
her  there  as  a  prisoner  would  give  occasion  for  the  enemy 
to  blaspheme,  and  the  courts  of  Hanover  and  Celle  were 
anxious  above  all  things  to  keep  the  real  facts  of  the  case 
from  leaking  out.  Both  courts  resolved  that  Konigsmarck's 
name  should  not  be  even  mentioned  in  connection  with  the 
Princess,  and  that  any  course  agreed  upon  should  be  carried 
out  as  though  the  Count  had  never  existed.  Pending 
further  negotiations,  it  was  resolved  to  remove  the  Prin- 
cess to  her  father's  territory — not  to  the  castle  of  Celle,  for 
that  would  look  as  though  he  condoned  her  conduct  and 
bring  her  and  her  mother  together — but  to  Ahlden,  a  lonely 
magistrate's  house  in  a  distant  village,  some  twenty  miles 
from  Hanover  and  Celle  respectively,  where  she  would  be 
effectually  cut  off  from  intercourse  with  the  world.  It  was 
determined,  if  possible,  to  give  this  removal  the  appearance 
of  voluntary  flight ;  and  the  imprisonment  of  Knesebeck 
was  also  decided  upon. 

While  Count  Platen  was  at  Celle  the  Princess  had 
addressed  another  letter  to  the  Elector,  who  had  always 
hitherto  been  inclined  to  treat  her  with  indulgence,  asking 
for  an  interview  with  him,  and  for  permission  to  be  allowed 
to  retire  to  the  territory  of  Celle.  The  Elector  merely 
acknowledged  the  letter,  saying  the  matter  was  under 
consideration. 

The  return  of  Count  Platen  to  Hanover,  bringing  the 
news  of  how  utterly  Duke  George  William  condemned  his 
daughter's  conduct,  deprived  the  unhappy  woman  of  her 
last  chance  of  protection  ;  her  own  father  had  turned 
against  her,  and  there  was  now  no  longer  any  need  to  treat 


THE  RUIN  OF  THE  PRINCESS  359 

her  with  consideration,  or  even  with  respect.  Knesebeck 
was  arrested  forthwith,  and  without  any  explanation  was 
hurried  off  to  prison.  Then  the  Princess  knew  that  she 
must  expect  the  worst. 

As  Count  Platen  had  seen  the  Duke  of  Celle,  he  was 
deemed  the  fit. and  proper  person,  despite  the  infamous 
conduct  of  his  wife,  to  interview  the  Princess,  and  conduct 
the  difficult  and  delicate  negotiations  necessary  to  bring 
her  to  reason.  Armed  therefore  with  the  Elector's  authority, 
he  went  to  the  Princess's  apartments,  entrusted  with  full 
power  to  deal  with  her  as  need  required.  The  Princess 
had  now  been  shut  up  in  her  rooms  for  nearly  a  fortnight 
under  strict  surveillance,  without  any  explanation  having 
been  vouchsafed,  though  she  had  guessed  the  reason  but 
too  well. 

Platen  went  expecting  to  find  her  humble  and  contrite; 
instead  he  found  her  angry  and  defiant,  and  most  indignant 
that  he  of  all  people  should  have  been  sent  to  her:  she  did 
not  forget  that  she  was  still  the  Electoral  Princess  and  the 
heiress  of  Celle,  and  her  first  question  was  why  the  Elector 
had  not  come  to  see  her  himself.  Platen  replied  that  His 
Highness  bade  him  say  that  he  declined  to  have  any  further 
communication  with  her,  and  had  sent  him  to  communicate 
to  the  Princess  the  fact  that  she  would  no  longer  be  per- 
mitted to  remain  at  the  court  of  Hanover.  To  this  the 
Princess  replied  that  she  desired  nothing  better  than  to  go 
away  from  it  for  ever ;  it  had  been  her  wish  for  a  long  time 
past.  But  she  demanded  the  reason  of  her  unjustifiable 
detention.  Platen  retorted  that  her  detention  was  not  un- 
justifiable ;  it  was  in  accordance  with  the  orders  of  her 
father  as  well  as  of  the  Elector,  and  she  had  brought  it 
upon  herself  by  her  misconduct.  The  Princess  haughtily 
asked  him  to  what  he  referred,  and  he  replied  tout  court,  to 
her  criminal  intimacy  with  Konigsmarck  ;  and  by  way  of 
thrusting  the  insult  home,  added  that  her  imprisonment 
was  likely  to  be  prolonged  as  it  was  suspected  that  she  was 
pregnant  by  Konigsmarck.  The  Princess's  anger  blazed 
forth  at  this  coarse  insult,  and  she  asked  Platen  if  he  mis- 
took her  for  his  shameless  wife.  Platen  rejoined  that  it 
was  useless  for  the  Princess  to  equivocate  or  to  deny : 
everything  was  discovered  and  known ;  they  had  possession 
of  her  letters,  and  her  lover  had  met  with  his  deserts.  The 


360   THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

Princess's  face  blanched,  and  she  exclaimed,  "  Where  is 
Konigsmarck  ?  "  Platen  answered  that  the  Count  was  dis- 
covered leaving  her  chamber  on  the  night  of  July  i,  and 
had  been  killed  in  resisting  his  arrest. 

This  cruel  blow  completely  shattered  the  Princess's  self- 
control  ;  her  agony  and  despair  were  piteous  to  behold. 
The  thought  of  Konigsmarck's  murder  swallowed  up  all 
else,  and,  lost  to  the  sense  of  her  own  peril,  she  burst  into 
weeping  and  lamentations,  praying  God  to  take  her,  since 
he  was  dead,  and  vowing  she  would  live  no  longer.  Platen 
looked  on  unmoved,  and  noted  down  all  these  cries  as  so 
many  proofs  of  her  guilt.  The  Princess,  beside  herself  with 
grief,  denounced  him  in  the  most  passionate  terms,  and  not 
him  only,  but  the  Elector  and  all  the  House  of  Hanover  as 
murderers  and  assassins ;  she  refused  to  parley  with  Platen 
longer,  and  bade  him  begone  from  her  presence.  He  left, 
not  without  giving  orders  for  the  Princess  to  be  watched 
closely,  as  she  threatened  to  kill  herself.  He  reported  all 
that  had  passed  to  the  Elector,  saying  that  the  Princess  was 
very  violent,  and  impenitent,  and  more  insubordinate  than 
ever. 

It  is  quite  possible  that  the  Princess  would  have  com- 
mitted suicide  if  she  had  possessed  the  means  of  doing  so, 
for  now,  deprived  of  every  friend  and  help  on  earth,  she 
abandoned  herself  to  despair.  Beside  the  fact  that  Konigs- 
marck was  dead  all  else  was  nothing.  She  no  longer  cared 
for  her  safety  or  heeded  her  interests  ;  life  had  nothing  left 
for  her.  As  she  wrote  to  him  long  ago  :  "  My  life  is  bound 
up  with  yours.  I  would  not  live  a  moment  if  you  were  to 
be  killed."  And  again:  "Without  you  life  would  be  in- 
tolerable, and  imprisonment  within  four  walls  preferable 
than  to  go  on  living  in  the  world  ".  The  thought  that  her 
lover  had  been  foully  murdered  coming  from  her  chamber 
that  night,  with  her  kisses  still  warm  on  his  lips,  drove  her 
nearly  mad,  and  to  her  excited  imagination  his  blood  seemed 
to  be  on  her  head.  Her  horror  and  loathing  of  his  assassins, 
among  whom  she  included  the  Electoral  family  of  Hanover 
as  well  as  the  Platens,  knew  no  bounds ;  compromise  with 
them  was  impossible,  and  her  one  desire  was  to  quit  this 
hated  palace  and  find  some  quiet  spot  where  she  might  die. 
To  this  frame  of  mind — absolute  recklessness  of  the  future 
and  indifference  to  her  own  interests — must  be  attributed 


THE  RUIN  OF  THE  PRINCESS  361 

much  of  the  subsequent  attitude  of  the  Princess,  an  attitude 
her  enemies  were  not  slow  to  take  advantage  of  to  work  for 
her  hurt. 

The  Princess's  defiance  was  reported  to  Celle,  and  re- 
conciliation was  seen  to  be  absolutely  impossible  or  even 
an  amicable  settlement.  Something  would  have  to  be  done 
forthwith,  and  it  was  resolved  that  steps  should  be  taken  to 
procure  a  separation,  on  the  ground  of  the  Princess's  wilful 
desertion  of  her  husband  and  refusal  to  submit  herself  to 
her  consort's  connubial  rights ;  the  more  drastic  measure 
of  divorce  was  not  yet  hinted  at.  The  first  thing  was  to 
remove  the  Princess  from  Hanover,  and  communications 
passed  daily  between  the  two  courts  as  to  when  the  Princess 
should  be  sent  to  Ahlden  and  the  best  means  of  twisting 
events  so  that  the  Konigsmarck  affair  might  be  kept  in 
the  background,  and  colour  given  to  the  theory  of  wilful 
desertion. 

In  accordance  with  this  policy  extraordinary  care  was 
then,  and  afterwards,  taken  to  destroy  or  suppress  any  docu- 
ments containing  mention  of  Konigsmarck's  name.  But 
though  no  reference  to  Konigsmarck  can  be  found  in  the 
manuscripts  preserved  in  the  Hanoverian  Archives,  they 
contain  several  interesting  papers  which  have  reference 
to  the  Princess's  case,  and  among  them  may  be  found  a 
despatch  bearing  on  this  particular  crisis,  a  despatch  of 
Platen  to  Bernstorff,  dated  July  13,  1694. 

In  it  Platen  replies  to  a  letter  from  Bernstorff,  and  says 
that  he  gathers  from  it  the  Princess  may  set  out  for  Ahlden 
on  July  15.  The  Princess  will  hear  this  "with  great  satis- 
faction, as  she  is  much  annoyed  that  the  journey  cannot  be 
undertaken  on  the  I4th,  so  anxious  is  she  to  leave  Han- 
over ".  After  discussing  the  journey,  retinue,  and  luggage, 
he  goes  on  :  "  As  to  the  proposition  of  suggesting  through 
Monsieur  Bussche  to  Madame  la  Princesse  that  she  may 
declare,  in  order  to  save  appearances,  that  she  will  not,  and 
cannot,  live  with  the  Prince,  and  therefore  has  begged  leave 
to  retire  before  his  return  here,  we  consider  it  desirable  to 
spread  such  a  rumour  abroad,  but  not  to  suggest  to  the 
Princess  that  she  should  say  it.  We  will  speak  to  Her 
Highness  to-morrow  on  the  matter  and  see  what  her  resolve 
is." 

On   July  15    Platen  again  writes  to  Bernstorff  saying 


362    THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

that  he  will  put  his  letter  of  the  I4th  before  the  Elector, 
and  does  not  doubt  that  he  will  fall  in  with  all  Bernstorff's 
proposals  with  regard  to  the  journey  to  Ahlden.  Further 
on  it  is  again  stated  :  "  She  [the  Princess]  is  extremely 
anxious  to  leave  this  place,  so  much  so  that  she  receives 
the  news  that  her  journey  must  still  be  delayed  a  couple  of 
days  with  great  impatience".  And  finally:  "The  depar- 
ture of  Madame  la  Princesse  Electorate  cannot  possibly 
pass  for  desertion,  as  she  wishes  to  take  all  her  belongings 
and  attendants  with  her  ". 

It  is  evident  from  these  letters  that  the  courts  of 
Hanover  and  Celle  were  anxious  to  save  appearances, 
even  to  the  extent  of  circulating  a  false  report  as  to  the 
Princess's  flight. 

On  July  17  the  journey  was,  so  to  speak,  put  upon  the 
stage,  and  the  Princess  quitted  Hanover  for  ever.  On 
arrival  at  Ahlden  she  found  herself  a  state  prisoner. 

Despite  all  these  elaborate  precautions,  the  truth  was 
beginning  to  leak  out.  Every  court  in  Europe  was  talking, 
and,  notwithstanding  persistent  denials,  the  imprisonment 
of  the  Princess  and  the  disappearance  of  Konigsmarck  were 
coupled  together.  Louis  XIV.  asked  the  Duchess  of  Orleans 
at  supper  whether  it  was  true  that  Konigsmarck  was  im- 
prisoned in  a  cellar  of  the  castle  at  Hanover.  Stepney 
writes  from  Dresden  : — 

"  We  have  whisperings  as  if  one  of  Count  Konigs- 
marck's  servants  was  come  hither  Post  from  Hanover  to 
tell  ye  Elector,  His  Master  has  been  missing  ever  since  the 
3Oth  of  last  month,  the  day  he  designed  to  leave  Hanover 
and  come  hither,  where  he  has  been  made  lately  Major 
Generall,  to  cleare  a  debt  of  ^  Dollars  which  He  won  of  ye 
Elector  when  he  made  ye  campaign  two  years  ago  with  you 
in  Flanders.  If  it  be  true  that  ye  Count  is  not  to  be  found, 
'tis  an  even  lay  that  they  have  used  him  little  better  than 
his  Brother  did  Esquire  Thinn,  and  perhaps  a  great  Lady 
likewise  (with  whom  he  is  suspected  to  have  been  familiar) 
may  have  been  some  cause  of  his  misfortune.  All  I  can 
say  of  ye  matter,  the  Electorall  Prince  of  Hanover  is  at 
Berlin,  acting  Comedyies,  and  making  merry  with  his  sister 
ye  Electrice."  1 

1  Stepney  to  Blathwayt,  Dresden  Despatch,  July  ^,  1694. 


THE  RUIN  OF  THE  PRINCESS  363 

In  Hanover,  too,  the  wildest  rumours  flew  about,  and  in 
Celle,  where  the  Princess  was  very  popular,  there  was  a  great 
feeling  of  indignation  at  the  way  she  was  being  treated.  All 
this  was  very  unpleasant  to  the  ducal  brothers,  and  feeling 
that  some  explanation  was  advisable,  they  drafted  a  circular 
letter  to  their  representatives  abroad  "  as  a  declaration  for 
foreign  courts  wherever  delicate  points  occur". 

"  The  Princess  at  first,"  so  runs  the  document,  "  displayed 
only  some  coldness  towards  her  husband,  but  Fraulein  von 
Knesebeck  by  degrees  inspired  her  with  such  dislike  to  him 
that  she  begged  from  her  father  permission  to  return  to  her 
parents'  home.  Her  father  was  displeased,  and  warned  the 
Princess  to  place  confidence  in  her  husband.  After  that  she 
paid  her  father  a  visit  at  Brockhausen  ;  but  when  he  learnt 
that  the  Prince  was  intending  to  make  a  journey  to  Berlin 
to  see  his  sister,  he  sent  his  daughter  back  to  Hanover  with 
further  admonitions  that  she  should  speak  with  her  husband 
before  his  departure.  But  her  dislike  of  her  husband  was  so 
intensified  by  the  machinations  of  Fraulein  von  Knesebeck 
that  she  determined  not  to  await  his  return  from  Berlin.  As 
soon  as  his  arrival  was  imminent,  she  withdrew  again  from 
Hanover  to  her  father.  He,  however,  sent  messengers  to 
meet  her  on  the  way  to  forbid  her  coming  to  Celle,  and  in- 
sisted on  her  either  returning,  or  withdrawing  for  the  present 
to  the  magistrate's  house  at  Ahlden,  which  lay  on  the  way. 
The  Princess  chose  the  latter  course ;  but  her  corrupter, 
Fraulein  von  Knesebeck,  was  arrested  at  the  wish  of  the 
Duke  George  William." 

This  circular  was  duly  despatched  to  the  Brunswick- 
Luneburg  envoys  at  the  different  courts.  The  very  fact  of 
speaking  of  Ahlden  as  if  it  lay  on  the  road  between  Hanover 
and  Celle,  when  it  was  twenty  miles  away  from  either  of 
them  in  an  opposite  direction,  shows  that  this  report  relied 
on  the  ignorance  of  foreign  courts  to  conceal  the  actual 
circumstances.  If  we  compare  Count  Platen's  two  letters 
already  quoted  with  this  circular,  it  is  clear  the  whole  policy 
of  those  in  authority  at  this  time  was  to  mislead.  There  is 
no  mention  of  Konigsmarck's  name,  no  more  than  if  he  had 
never  existed.  Knesebeck  is  made  the  scapegoat,  and  her 
conduct  is  distorted  to  veil  the  Princess's  errors. 

We  must  now  leave  the  Princess  for  a  space  and  return 
to  the  fate  of  her  lover. 


364   THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

Though  this  circular  to  the  foreign  courts  might  ex- 
plain the  Princess's  captivity,  it  shed  no  light  whatever  on 
Konigsmarck's  disappearance,  with  which  they  were  much 
more  concerned.  The  Hanoverian  government  at  this  time 
were  verily  at  their  wits'  end  to  meet  the  inquiries  which 
beset  them  on  every  side,  and  the  truth  that  murder  will  out 
was  being  proved  once  more.  The  Count's  sisters  were  most 
untiring  in  their  efforts  to  discover  their  missing  brother. 
Acting  on  the  secretary's  advice,  the  Countess  Aurora  and 
the  Countess  Lewenhaupt,  then  at  Hamburg,  waited  twelve 
days  after  receiving  his  letter,  before  taking  any  steps,  in 
the  hope  that  their  brother  might  turn  up.  Then  they 
wrote  to  the  Elector  of  Hanover  for  information,  saying 
that  they  were  credibly  informed  he  was  imprisoned  in 
the  Elector's  palace.  To  this  letter  as  to  all  others,  from 
whatever  quarter,  the  Elector  replied,  saying  that  he  had 
no  knowledge  of  Konigsmarck's  whereabouts,  nor  was  he  in 
any  way  responsible  for  him.  On  receiving  this  unsatis- 
factory reply  Aurora  set  out  for  Hanover  and  proceeded  to 
prosecute  a  vigorous  search.  At  Hanover  she  was  simply 
ordered  to  leave,  and  given  a  time  to  quit  the  town.1  She 
then  went  to  Celle,  where  Bernstorff  told  her  that  her  im- 
portunate demands  would  only  have  the  effect,  in  case  her 
brother  was  in  the  hands  of  the  Hanoverian  government, 
of  making  them  refuse  to  give  him  up  ; 2  so  after  remaining 
some  time  at  Celle  without  any  result,  she  set  out  for 
Dresden  to  implore  the  aid  of  the  Elector  of  Saxony. 

Before  the  arrival  of  Aurora  the  Elector  of  Saxony  had 
already  instituted  a  search  for  the  vanished  man.  On 
receipt  of  a  letter  from  Hildebrand  he  sent  Bannier  to 
Hanover  on  July  13  to  demand  the  instant  restitution  of 
Konigsmarck,  on  the  ground  that  he  was  major-general 
in  a  cavalry  regiment  of  the  Saxon  army,  under  orders  to 
join  the  active  forces  on  the  Rhine.  Aghast  at  this  per- 
emptory message  from  his  brother  of  Saxony,  the  Elector 
Ernest  Augustus  shuffled  and  said  that  he  had  no  wish 
to  detain  the  Count,  and  did  not  hold  him  in  his  power. 
Bannier  rejoined  that  Konigsmarck  had  disappeared,  and 

1  The  Magazine  of  the  Historical  Association  for  Lower  Saxony,   1879, 
p.  65. 

2  Communication  of  Bernstorff  at  the  Conference  of  Engesen,  August  5, 
1694. 


THE  RUIN  OF  THE  PRINCESS  365 

it  was  the  duty  of  the  Elector  to  institute  a  search  for  him. 
The  answer  was  that  His  Serene  Highness,  "in  personal 
remembrance  of  the  high  services  as  colonel  rendered  by 
the  vanished  man,  would  not  have  failed  to  institute  such 
an  inquiry,  but  the  fact  had  been  elicited  from  the  Count's 
own  servants  that  he  had  often  gone  away  at  night  without 
leaving  any  message,  and  remained  away  for  days  at  a 
time,  and  so  there  was  no  ground  for  instituting  inquiries  ". 
Bannier  then  pertinently  asked  why  the  Count's  belongings 
had  been  sealed  and  his  papers  seized.  This  was  met  by 
the  statement,  that  when  an  officer  in  the  Hanoverian  ser- 
vice died  it  was  customary  to  subtract  his  official  papers ; 
and  stress  was  laid  on  the  fact  that  the  Count  was  still  in 
the  Hanoverian  army  when  he  vanished,  and  therefore  the 
Elector,  though  willing  to  do  all  in  his  power,  could  not 
rightly  be  expected  to  hand  the  man  over  if  he  were  found.1 
But,  however  much  the  Hanoverian  ministers  might  evade 
or  deny,  it  was  firmly  believed  at  Dresden  that  Konigs- 
marck's  disappearance  was  connected  with  the  Princess. 
Something  of  this  may  be  gathered  from  the  following  letter, 
which  Stepney  wrote  at  this  time  to  Cresset,  the  English 
envoy  at  Hanover  : — 

"  I  have  great  curiositie  to  know  what  piece  of  mischief 
has  been  brewing  at  Hannover.  If  you  dare  not  trust  it 
at  length,  I  must  beg  you  to  satisfy  me  in  Cypher,  as  like- 
wise with  ye  particulars  of  your  Princess's  ruine.  Amours 
are  fatall  in  these  parts  ;  wee  have  had  a  scene  of  them 
here,  and  may  hereafter  have  more  ye  like  nature.  But  at 
present  ye  Tragedy  is  removed  to  yr  Courts,  and  I  fear 
Daggers  and  poyson  will  be  as  familiar  among  you  as  they 
are  in  Italy.  Yr  Princes  have  been  often  there,  and  may 
have  learned  ye  humour  of  ye  country  of  despatching  people 
without  Noise.  A  servant  or  two  of  Count  Konigsmarck 
run  frequently  betwixt  this  place  and  Hannover,  (as  I  have 
heard  Count  Berlo's  dog  did  betwixt  y6  Camp  and  Brusses 
after  y6  Battle  of  Fleuros,)  seeking  out  their  master,  but 
have  no  tidings  :  our  Elector  sent  one  of  his  Adjutants, 
Mr.  Bannier  (a  Swede  likewise)  to  Hannover,  I  believe 
with  a  design  to  stopp  ye  blow  if  it  was  not  yet  given. 
But  I  suppose  the  Corps  by  this  time  is  in  ye  common 

1  Vide  Article  in  Magazine  for  Lower  Saxony,  1879. 


366   THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

shore,  and  our  Elector  by  ye  accident  has  cleared  ye  debt 
^ff  R  he  had  lost  to  him  two  years  ago  at  play.  I  have 
been  told  his  sister  raves  like  Cassandra,  and  will  know 
what  is  become  of  her  brother ;  but  at  Hannover  they 
answer,  like  Cain,  that  they  are  not  her  brother's  keeper, 
and  that  ye  Body  should  be  found  (which  I  believe  as  little 
as  y*  of  Moses),  yet  ye  circumstances  of  ye  Murder  will  be 
left  as  much  in  yc  dark  as  ye  manner  of  despatching  Sir 
Edmonbury  Godfrey  has  been.  He  was  not  recommended 
to  me  by  Mr.  Stratford  ;  I  knew  him  in  England,  at  Ham- 
burg, in  Flanders  and  at  Hannover  for  a  dissolute  debauchee 
whom  I  would  always  have  avoided.  By  chance  I  ate 
with  him  here  at  Count  Frizews  and  our  new  privy 
counsellor  Haxthausen,  and  by  chance  likewise  they  did 
suppe  with  me,  whereas  they  were  invited  to  Mr.  Bomen- 
burgh's,  who  too  late  remembered  it  was  a  fish-night,  and 
so  shifted  off  his  own  company  on  me.  This  is  all  I  have 
had  to  do  with  ye  spark,  and  if  he  has  been  so  black  as  we 
think  he  is,  his  Fate  (be  what  it  will)  is  not  to  be  pityed." l 

To  modify  the  somewhat  cavalier  treatment  of  Bannier 
at  Hanover  a  statement  was  drawn  up  by  the  Hanoverian 
government,  and  Count  VVitgenstein  was  despatched  to 
Dresden  as  an  envoy  extraordinary  to  explain  matters 
personally.  Witgenstein  was  well  received  by  the  Elector 
of  Saxony,  and  the  matter  would  probably  have  blown 
over  without  further  noise  had  it  not  been  for  the  arrival 
at  Dresden  of  the  Countess  Aurora.  This  beautiful  and 
brilliant  woman,  the  fame  of  whose  charms  had  travelled 
to  every  court  of  Europe,  threw  herself  at  the  Elector's  feet, 
and,  repeating  all  that  she  had  gleaned  of  her  brother's 
disappearance  at  Hanover  and  Celle,  besought  his  powerful 
aid  and  protection.  Augustus  the  Strong  could  never  refuse 
the  prayer  of  beauty  in  distress.  He  assured  Aurora  that 
he  would  do  everything  in  his  power  to  discover  the  missing 
man,  and  force  the  Elector  of  Hanover,  if  need  be  at  the 
point  of  the  sword,  to  give  him  up.  Stepney  writes  again  : — 

"  Connigsmark's  sister  is  come  hither  under  pretence  of 
getting  yc  Elector  to  interest  himself  more  warmly  than 
he  has  done  hitherto  with  the  Dukes  of  Brunswick-Lune- 
burg  about  her  brother's  liberty,  if  he  be  still  alive :  she 

Stepney  to  Cresset,  Dresden  Despatch,  August   '  l694' 


THE  RUIN  OF  THE  PRINCESS  367 

believes  he  is,  and  wherefore  ye  Elector  has  sent  orders  to 
his  Adjutant  Bannier  to  demand  him  vigorously.  Count 
Witgen stein  (who  is  here  from  Hannover)  endeavours  to 
mitigate  ye  Elector  by  alledging  he  ought  not  to  concern 
himself  for  a  person  who  was  actually  in  the  Hannoverian 
service  having  received  ye  pay  three  days  before  he  was 
missing,  besides  that  it  is  usual  before  laying  down  to  make 
up  accounts  with  the  Regiment,  to  take  leave  at  ye  head 
of  it,  and  so  have  a  Conge  in  form  signed  by  ye  Master. 
All  which  ceremonies  being  omitted,  he  was  lyable  to  be 
punished  as  a  Deserter  if  he  were  yet  to  be  found  which 
ye  Elector  of  Hannover  will  know  nothing  of,  he  being 
a  debauched  rambling  sparke,  who  kept  irregular  hours, 
and  consequently  it  is  next  to  an  impossibility  to  give 
an  account  what  may  become  of  him.  I  cannot  tell  if 
ye  Elector  of  Saxony  will  be  contented  with  these  excuses. 
Count  Witgenstein  told  me  yesterday  his  greatest  mis- 
fortune is  that  the  Elector  has  not  given  ye  cognizance  of 
this  affaire  to  his  Privy  Council,  but  has  referred  it  as  he 
does  almost  all  others  to  his  favourite  Haxthausen,  and 
he  communicates  all  to  his  cousin  ye  Dane,  who,  being  a 
boutefeu,  seeks  all  occasions  to  embroile  this  house  with 
that  of  Hannover,  and  thinks  he  has  now  got  a  good  handle 
besides  ye  old  dispute  about  Saxe-Lawenburg,  which  is  only 
covered  with  Ashes,  and  will  certainly  break  out  when  time 
serves.  If  ye  Count  be  dead,  I  suppose  ye  other  syde  of  his 
sister's  errand  will  be  to  try  if  she  can  recover  any  part  of 
ye  ^  Dollars  (which  as  I  told  you)  ye  Elector  had  lost  to  her 
brother  in  Flanders,  and  I  arn  persuaded  she  will  not  take 
his  death  to  heart  when  she  has  once  got  her  hand  on  his 
inheritance.  They  have  lodged  her  in  ye  court." l 

Augustus  the  Strong  again  told  Bannier  to  prosecute 
his  inquiries  at  Hanover  with'  the  utmost  vigour ;  and  thus 
it  came  about  that,  while  the  Hanoverian  envoy  in  Dresden 
was  being  cordially  received,  the  Saxon  envoy  in  Hanover 
was  pressing  and  threatening  more  than  ever.  Bannier 
declared  he  was  instructed  by  his  master  to  demand  once 
more  the  restitution  of  Konigsmarck  sharply  and  energetic- 
ally, and  a  refusal  might  entail  mischief,  for  his  master  had 
promised  their  brother's  production  to  the  Count's  sisters^ 

1  Stepney's  Despatch,  Dresden,  August  J- ,  1694. 

24 


368   THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

and  made  a  point  of  honour  of  fulfilling  his  promise.  The 
situation  was  very  unpleasant  for  the  Hanoverian  govern- 
ment, for  it  was  feared  that  Saxony  might  give  its  powerful 
support  to  the  enemies  of  Hanover — Wolfenbiittel,  Miinster, 
and  Denmark. 

The  brothers  of  Hanover  and  Celle,  driven  to  ex- 
tremities, appealed  to  the  Emperor,  and  declared  that 
unless  Augustus  the  Strong  took  up  a  more  reasonable 
attitude  they  would  withdraw  their  troops  from  the  Allies. 
This  threat  made  a  strong  impression  in  Vienna,  where  the 
action  of  the  Saxon  court  was  called  preposterous.  How 
could  the  Elector  Augustus,  the  Emperor  asked,  demand 
from  the  Elector  of  Hanover  a  man  who  had  not  been 
given  into  his  charge?  The  Emperor  and  the  Elector  of 
Brandenburg  brought  pressure  to  bear  on  Saxony,  and 
both  these  potentates  used  their  influence  in  opposition  to 
the  promptings  of  the  Countess  Aurora.  Stepney  writes  at 
this  time  :— 

"  The  Danish  Haxthausen  pretends  to  be  going  from 
hence  in  a  day  or  two  and  ye  Countess  of  Konigsmarck 
likewise.  The  Elector  had  used  her  with  great  distinction, 
and  has  supp'd  with  her  •  twice  with  ye  Privy  Counsellor 
Haxthausen  at  his  House,  some  think  these  Curttisyes  are 
only  to  put  her  of  with  good  words  since  there  is  nothing 
more  to  be  done  for  her  Brother.  However,  Mr.  Bannier  is 
still  soliciting  at  Hannover,  and  Count  Witgenstein  making 
the  best  excuses  he  can  here."  1 

It  would  seem  from  this  that  Aurora  was  losing  ground  ; 
but  still  Bannier  was  instructed  to  insist  at  the  court 
of  Hanover  for  Konigsmarck's  restitution.  He  therefore 
offered  Count  Platen  two  alternatives — either  Konigsmarck 
was  in  confinement,  or  they  had  put  an  end  to  him.  If  the 
former,  and  his  release  was  not  to  be  obtained  by  mild 
measures,  His  Highness  would  be  obliged  to  show  his  just 
resentment  and  take  others ;  and  he  let  slip  the  remark 
casually  that  other  Powers  would  be  likely  to  interest 
themselves  in  the  fate  of  Konigsmarck,  and  make  common 
cause  with  the  Elector  of  Saxony  if  His  Highness  should 
be  driven  to  resort  to  extreme  measures.  He  went  on  to 
say  that  if  Konigsmarck  did  not  reappear,  "  the  witnesses 

1  Stepney  to  Blathwayt,  Dresden,  August  — ,  1694. 


THE  RUIN  OF  THE  PRINCESS  369 

whom  they  could  produce  would  support  Saxony  to  the 
astonishment  of  the  whole  world,  and  matters  would  come 
to  extremities  ". 

But  Bannier's  threats  at  Hanover  were  checkmated  by 
Witgenstein's  representations  at  Dresden,  and  eventually 
the  long  and  violent  altercation  came  to  an  end  without 
anything  having  been  done.  How  could  it  be  otherwise  ? 
Konigsmarck  was  dead,  and  all  the  princes  and  potentates 
of  the  world  could  not  bring  him  back  to  life. 

Stepney  thus  describes  the  final  scene  of  the  dispute  : — 

"  Yesterday  Count  Witgenstein  received  an  express  from 
Hannover  about  Count  Coningsmark,  and  had  this  morning 
audience  of  the  Elector,  in  which  (he  tells  me)  he  made  long 
contestations  in  ye  Elector  of  Hannover's  name,  how  will- 
ing he  is  to  cultivate  his  friendship  by  doing  all  that  could 
be  desired  of  him,  but  that  he  protested  he  knows  not 
what  has  become  of  ye  Person  for  whom  application  was 
made,  and  to  ye  Question  whether  he  was  alive  or  dead  no 
positive  answer  could  be  given,  since  after  ye  best  enquiry 
that  could  be  made  they  were  able  to  make  no  true  dis- 
covery, which  left  a  very  strong  suspicion  that  he  is  rather 
dead  than  Living.  The  Elector  of  Saxony  seemed  very 
moderate  after  this  answer,  as  if  he  doubted  not  the  truth 
of  what  had  been  offered  and  replyed,  only  that  he  hoped 
as  an  instance  of  friendship  that  ye  Elector  of  Hannover 
would  give  him  notice  as  soon  as  he  should  learn  any  tidings 
of  Count  Coningsmark,  and  I  believe  here  that  ye  affair 
will  end  without  causing  any  breach  betwixt  ye  two  Electors. 
The  Count's  sister  is  gone  hence,  but  I  know  not  which 
course  she  steers."  1 

Thus  ended  the  ineffectual  search  for  Konigsmarck. 
His  disappearance  nearly  set  Europe  by  the  ears,  and  shows 
that  he  was  a  far  more  important  personage  than  his  enemies 
are  wont  to  admit  him  to  be. 

If  the  Countess  Aurora  left  Dresden,  it  was  only  for  a 
time,  and  she  returned  later  to  be  one  of  the  many  mistresses 
of  Augustus  the  Strong.  The  result  of  their  liaison  was 
the  birth  of  the  most  celebrated  of  all  Augustus's  three 
hundred  and  fifty-four  illegitimate  children — Maurice,  the 
famous  Marshal  de  Saxe. 

1  Stepney  to  Blathwayt,  Dresden,  August  — ,  1694. 
24 


370   THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

Aurora  soon  found  herself  superseded  in  the  fickle  favour 
of  the  Elector,  and  a  quarrel  ensued  between  her  and  her 
lover.  She  bitterly  reproached  him,  and  it  would  seem  that 
the  Elector  had  also  something  against  Aurora,  since  he 
reminded  her  that  Caesar's  wife  should  be  above  suspicion. 
In  reply  she  gave  utterance  to  the  celebrated  mot :  "  The 
cases  are  not  parallel :  you  are  not  Caesar,  and  I  am  not 
your  wife".  The  rest  of  Aurora's  strange  career  and  all 
that  she  did — how  she  withdrew  to  the  Abbey  of  Quedlin- 
burg,  how  she  went  on  her  ineffectual  mission  to  the  King 
of  Sweden,  how  she  paid  her  son's  debts  and  plotted  for 
him,  and  all  the  other  events  of  her  most  eventful  life, 
belong  not  to  this  history. 


CHAPTER  XXV. 

THE  DIVORCE. 

Here  are  full  many  men  of  counsel  met ; 
Not  one  for  me. 

SWINBURNE,  Mary  Stuart. 

Hope,  withering,  fled,  and  Mercy  sighed,  Farewell ! 

BYRON. 

WE  now  return  to  the  Princess  at  Ahlden,  where  she  was 
still  kept  in  rigorous  imprisonment.  The  fiction  of  the 
Princess's  so-called  desertion  was  maintained  even  in  the 
instructions  which  Duke  George  William  gave  to  his  com- 
mandant for  the  treatment  of  the  Princess  on  her  arrival 
at  Ahlden.  The  commandant  was  Seigneur  de  la  Portiere, 
Grand  Falconer  to  the  court  of  Celle.  And  the  Duke 
wrote : — 

"  i.  Since  it  is  my  intention  that  my  daughter  should 
remain  at  Ahlden,  and  have  no  communication,  either  by 
letter  or  other  means,  with  any  one  whatsoever  until  she 
returns  to  her  duties  with  the  Electoral  Prince,  her  consort, 
the  Seigneur  de  la  Portiere  will  make  himself  acquainted 
with  these  wishes  of  mine  and  what  I  have  ordered,  as  I  do 
by  this  present.  He  is  not  to  convey,  nor  permit  to  be 
conveyed  by  others  to  my  daughter,  any  letters  except 
such  as  come  with  an  order  signed  by  my  hand  ;  and  in  like 
manner  he  is  not  to  dispatch,  nor  allow  to  be  dispatched, 
any  letter  of  my  daughter's  except  with  express  permission 
from  me. 

"2.  In  conformity  with  this  order,  the  Seigneur  de  la 
Portiere  will  instruct  the  women,  valets,  and  other  domestics 
in  attendance  on  my  daughter  and  all  who  enter  the  castle, 
that  those  who  have,  or  receive,  letters  for  any  one  whatso- 
ever in,  or  out  of,  the  castle  must  place  them  in  the  hands 
of  the  Seigneur  de  la  Portiere  on  pain  of  death. 

"3.  All  letters  which  come  for  any  of  the  servants,  or 

371  24  * 


372   THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

which  are  sent  by  any  on  their  business,  will  likewise  be 
given  to  the  Seigneur  de  la  Fortiere,  and  read  by  him, 
before  being  allowed  to  pass ;  and  those  which  are  allowed 
to  go  must  be  stamped  with  his  seal.  If  the  Seigneur  de 
la  Fortiere  finds  the  slightest  cause  for  suspicion  in  them, 
he  will  send  them  direct  to  me. 

"4.  The  Seigneur  de  la  Fortiere  can  have  all  persons 
searched  by  the  officer  or  soldiers  of  the  guard  who  give 
him  the  slightest  cause  to  suspect  them  of  being  implicated 
in  bringing  forbidden  messages  or  letters. 

"5.  Except  those  at  Ahlden  in  attendance  on  my 
daughter,  no  one  else  will*  enter  the  castle  without  my 
express  permission  ;  and  the  above-mentioned  servants  are 
to  have  no  conversation  with  any  strangers — that  is  to  say, 
with  any  others  but  those  of  the  household  and  people  of 
Ahlden — except  in  the  presence  of  the  Seigneur  de  la 
Fortiere  or  of  some  one  commissioned  by  him  for  that 
purpose ;  and  the  Seigneur  de  la  Fortiere  will  give  orders 
that  as  soon  as  strangers  arrive  in  the  said  Ahlden  he  shall 
be  immediately  informed  of  the  fact. 

"  6.  The  women  and  other  attendants  on  my  daughter 
will  not  go  out  of  the  castle  without  the  Seigneur  de  la 
Fortiere's  permission,  and  the  remainder  of  the  servants 
will  only  enter  the  castle  at  fixed  hours  to  perform  their 
duties,  and  will  go  away  again  as  soon  as  they  are  done. 

"  7.  My  daughter  will  only  leave  the  castle  to  take  a  walk, 
if  she  wishes,  in  the  garden  between  the  two  moats,  and  then 
she  must  be  accompanied  by  the  Seigneur  de  la  Fortiere. 

"8.  If  my  daughter  wishes  to  take  her  meals  in  the 
salon  outside  her  rooms,  she  will  have  permission  to  do  so, 
and  the  persons  whose  business  it  is  to  be  in  waiting,  and 
the  footmen  will  attend  at  these  meals  ;  but  the  Seigneur 
de  la  Fortiere  will  always  be  present,  and,  after  rising  from 
table,  everybody  will  leave  my  daughter  except  the  lady-in- 
waiting  and  her  chamber  attendants. 

"9.  The  Seigneur  de  la  Fortiere  will  have  the  power  to 
require  the  officer  of  the  guard,  in  virtue  of  the  orders  I 
have  given  him  for  that  purpose,  to  adopt  strong  measures 
to  ensure  the  exact  execution  and  observance  of  the  above, 
as  far  as  such  may  be  necessary." 

It  is  very  difficult  to  follow  accurately  the  successive 


THE  DIVORCE  373 

stages  of  the  proceedings  that  followed  the  Princess's 
arrival  at  Ahlden,  as  most  of  the  official  documents  written 
at  the  time  were  published  with  intent  to  deceive,  and  the 
greater  part  of  the  divorce  proceedings  have  been  suppressed ; 
but  Dr.  Kocher,  a  most  eminent  authority  on  the  history  of 
the  House  of  Hanover,  and  sometime  keeper  of  the  Han- 
overian Archives,  has  collected  together  sundry  fragments 
of  documents  which  remain,  and  has  published  them  with 
comments  of  his  own  in  Sybel's  Historische  Zeitschrift — a 
valuable  contribution,  in  which  he  demonstrates  that  the 
divorce  trial  partook  of  the  nature  of  a  farce,  inasmuch  as 
everything  had  been  determined  beforehand.  Schaumann, 
the  historian,  another  eminent  authority,  on  the  other  hand, 
maintains  that  the  divorce  proceedings  were  instituted  from 
a  real  desire  to  bring  about  a  reconciliation  between  the 
Princess  and  her  husband.  Here  we  have  a  conflict  of 
opinion.  But  this  much  at  least  seems  certain  :  the  court 
of  Celle  would  gladly  have  brought  about  a  reconciliation 
had  it  been  possible,  and  the  court  of  Hanover  would 
probably  have  reluctantly  agreed  to  one  if  it  had  been 
possible  for  them  to  get  rid  of  the  Princess  and  at  the 
same  time  to  keep  her  territory.  But  the  determined 
attitude  of  the  Princess  to  break  at  all  hazards  with  the 
hated  House  of  Hanover  rendered  from  the  first  any 
attempt  at  reconciliation  out  of  the  question  ;  and  Kocher 
is  no  doubt  right  in  his  main  contention.  The  only  point 
where  we  differ  from  him  in  his  elaborate  study  of  the 
divorce  question  is  that  he  seems  to  treat  the  Princess  as 
though  she  were  a  lay  figure,  to  be  pulled  about  at  will, 
and  overlooks  the  fact  that  she  was  a  passionate  and  self- 
willed  woman,  just  now  driven  to  bay  by  the  death  of  her 
lover,  and  determined  at  all  cost  to  free  herself  from  her 
husband.  Under  no  conditions  would  she  make  terms  with 
Konigsmarck's  murderers,  or  return  to  the  life  she  loathed  ; 
in  her  present  state  of  mind  she  preferred  imprisonment,  or 
even  death,  to  such  an  alternative.  The  only  thing  there- 
fore that  remained  was  to  bring  about  a  separation  or 
divorce  as  expeditiously,  and  with  as  little  scandal,  as  pos- 
sible. 

Meanwhile  the  Princess  in  the  castle  of  Ahlden  was 
alone  ;  her  mother  was  not  permitted  to  see  her,  and  the 
only  person  suffered  to  approach  her  was  a  minister  of 


374   THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

religion.  Soon  after  her  arrival  at  Ahlden  two  ministers 
from  the  court  of  Celle,  Bernstorff  and  Biilow,  came  to  wait 
upon  the  Princess.  It  must  have  been  a  bitter  moment  for 
her  when  she  received  them,  for  she  looked  to  Celle  for 
help,  and  none  came.  The  two  ministers  spent  some  hours 
with  her,  and  when  they  left  they  drew  up  a  report  of  what 
happened  in  a  protocol  headed,  "  Report  of  what  took  place 
at  Ahlden,"  which  begins  as  follows  :— 

"  The  reason  of  our  journey  was.  to  tell  the  Princess  the 
true  state  of  affairs,  that  everything  was  discovered,  and 
therefore  nothing  could  be  denied  or  questioned  ;  to  tell 
her  what  would  be  publicly  said  in  her  defence,  and  how 
she  ought  to  speak  in  public  and  conduct  herself  in  the 
forthcoming  divorce  case  ". 

In  this  document  Konigsmarck  is  not  mentioned,  but 
it  is  easy  to  see  what  is  referred  to  in  the  expression  "  every- 
thing was  discovered  ".  The  true  reason  was  to  be  hidden, 
for  the  honour  of  the  House ;  and  the  Princess  was  to 
acquiesce  in  a  divorce  on  the  ostensible  ground  of  her 
wilful  desertion.  The  ministers  found  her  only  too  ready 
to  fall  in  with  their  suggestions,  and  the  report  goes  on  to 
say:  "and  she  acquiesces  in  the  separation,  and  recognises 
that  no  other  course  could  be  taken.  .  .  .  They  were  to  tell 
her  what  to  do,  and  she  would  submit.  .  .  ." 

The  ministers  found  her  cast  down  and  despondent,  but 
hardly  what  they  describe  as  penitent,  for  despite  their 
statement  "  that  everything  was  known,"  they  failed  to 
elicit  an  avowal  of  conjugal  unfaithfulness.  The  Princess 
admitted  appearances  were  against  her.  They  might  think 
her  culpable  or  not  as  they  pleased,  but  she  denied  the 
actual  offence  in  toto,  and  nothing  ever  made  her  swerve 
from  this  position.  In  this  she  was  borne  out  by  Knesebeck, 
then  far  away  from  her  beloved  mistress  and  in  prison  at 
Springe.  This  lady,  though  examined  and  cross-examined 
and  threatened  with  punishment  unless  she  told  the  whole 
truth,  absolutely  denied  that  the  Princess  had  been  guilty 
with  Konigsmarck,  though  she  admitted  to  "  a  few  letters 
and  indiscretions  ".  Later  she  was  examined  again,  on  her 
removal  to  the  fortress  of  Schartzfels,  and  she  still  affirmed 
that  the  Princess  was  innocent,  and  no  threats  of  imprison- 


THE  DIVORCE  375 

ment  or  torture  made  her  swerve  from  her  loyalty.  Years 
later,  when  she  had  gained  her  liberty  and  petitioned  Duke 
George  William  for  her  confiscated  property,  she  did  not 
omit  to  bear  witness  again  to  the  innocence  of  the  Princess. 

This,  of  course,  opens  up  the  much-vexed  question  of 
how  far  the  Princess's  love  for  Konigsmarck  went.  Some 
there  are,  like  Duke  Antony  Ulrich,  who  believe  the  Prin- 
cess to  be  absolutely  innocent,  even  in  thought.  This  theory, 
however,  is  untenable,  since  both  the  Princess  and  Knese- 
beck  admit,  at  least,  to  indiscretions.  Others  there  are, 
like  the  Duchess  of  Orleans,  who  considered  the  Princess 
absolutely  bad  ;  but  their  bias  is  manifest,  and  they  pro- 
duce no  evidence  in  support  of  their  contentions.  Between 
these  two  classes  are  the  more  numerous  company  of 
witnesses,  who  include  such  eminent  names  as  Schaumann 
and  Kocher.  These  do  not  believe  the  Princess  guilty  of 
actual  unfaithfulness  to  her  husband.  Kocher  says,  in 
summing  up  an  elaborate  argument :  "  We  shall  prob- 
ably therefore  hit  the  mark  aright  when  we  say  that  the 
Princess  wandered  on  the  edge  of  an  abyss  by  vouchsafing 
to  a  man  who  was  a  foreigner  and  of  loose  morals  not  a 
criminal  intimacy,  but  a  confidence  which  was  a  slight  on 
duty  and  propriety  ". 

But  it  must  be  remembered  that  Kocher x  and  Schau- 
mann do  not  accept  the  authenticity  of  the  letters,  which 
they  had  never  examined  and  have  never  seen,  save  for 
the  few  fragments  published  by  Palmblad,  confused  as  to 
the  cypher  and  the  dates,  and  possibly  a  stray  letter  in 
one  or  two  essays.  There  remains  another  authority, 
Count  Schulenburg-Klosterrode,  who  believes  firmly  in 
the  authenticity  of  the  letters,  and  yet  agrees  with  Kocher 
that  the  love  between  the  Princess  and  Konigsmarck  was 
never  consummated.  With  all  the  good-will  in  the  world, 
it  is  not  easy  to  agree  with  this  view,  believing  as  we  do 
in  the  genuineness  of  the  letters,  and  when  we  remember 
the  fiery  passion  breathed  through  them,  the  stolen  meet- 
ings, the  utter  laxity  of  the  morals  of  the  time,  and  last, 
but  not  least,  the  harshness  of  the  Princess's  father,  who 
would  surely  never  have  refused  to  see  his  only  child  and 

1  Yet  Kocher  knew  that  letters  did  exist,  for  he  quotes  himself  the  testi- 
mony of  Leibniz :  "  They  would  never  have  thought  her  so  guilty  at  Celle 
had  not  her  letters  been  produced"  (Hist.  Zeitschrift,  vol.  xlviii.,  p.  233). 


376   THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

have  condemned  her  to  lifelong  imprisonment  if  she  had 
only  been  guilty  of  "indiscretion".  When  we  remember 
all  this,  it  must  be  admitted  that  the  evidence  against  her 
is  so  strong  as  to  be  almost  overwhelming.  This  much  was 
certain  :  she  loved  one  man  and  one  man  only,  she  sacrificed 
everything  for  him,  and  she  was  faithful  to  her  love  in  life 
and  in  death.  Whatever  were  her  mistakes,  she  was  more 
sinned  against  than  sinning. 

When  Biilow  and  Bernstorff  returned  to  Celle,  after 
their  interview  with  the  Princess  at  Ahlden,  convinced 
that  she  was  steadfast  in  her  resolve  never  to  return  to 
Hanover,  and  would  agree  to  anything  which  would  bring 
about  this  result,  short  of  an  avowal  of  actual  guilt,  matters 
were  greatly  simplified.  The  ministers  of  Celle  were  in 
favour  of  a  separation,  the  Hanoverian  government  de- 
manded a  divorce,  and,  as  the  Princess's  attitude  was 
utterly  unyielding,  Celle  gave  way  and  a  divorce  was 
decided  upon.  We  find  Cresset  about  this  time  writing 
from  Walsrode,  a  little  country  town  near  Ahlden  : — 

"  Our  unlucky  scene  lies  as  it  did,  the  divorce  going 
forward,  and  we  are  all  to  be  quite  shamed.  I  have  been 
twice  shooting  with  this  Duke  just  under  the  walls  of  the 
house  where  his  daughter  is  confined.  I  hear  she  is  sud- 
denly to  be  removed  into  the  country  of  Hanover.  Next 
post  I  will  write  what  I  can  learn  of  it  to  my  Lord  Duke. 
At  present  I  know  nothing  new.  All  things  look  tragical." l 

The  ministers  of  Hanover  and  Celle  held  several  con- 
ferences at  Engesen,  where  a  plan  was  drawn  up  for  the 
divorce  of  the  Princess.  It  was  resolved  to  form  a  special 
Consistorial  Court  to  try  the  divorce  case,  and  care  was 
taken  that  everything  should  be  done  in  due  order  and  with 
an  appearance  of  legality.  Konigsmarck's  name  was  not 
to  be  so  much  as  mentioned  ;  indeed,  how  could  it  be  men- 
tioned when  his  avengers  were  knocking  so  loudly  at  the 
gates?  Taking  it  for  granted  that  the  divorce  would  be 

1  Cresset's  Despatch,  August  14, 1694.  The  letter  which  Cresset  mentions 
as  being  about  to  write  to  the  Duke  of  Shrewsbury  is  not  preserved  in  the 
State  Paper  Office,  nor  indeed  are  any  letters  of  his  at  this  time,  save  a  few 
fragments  probably  overlooked,  which  have  been  quoted  here.  There  is 
nothing  bearing  on  the  Princess  or  Konigsmarck.  As  the  English  envoy's 
correspondence  is  voluminous  just  before  and  just  after  the  catastrophe,  these 
letters  have  been  doubtless  suppressed  purposely :  it  is  a  pity,  as  they  would 
have  thrown  great  light  on  this  vexed  question. 


THE  DIVORCE  377 

decreed,  the  following  arrangements  were  then  made  between 
the  Elector  and  the  Duke  of  Celle  for  the  Princess's  safe 
keeping  and  maintenance  : — 

George  William  agreed  to  keep  the  Princess  guarded  at 
some  magistrate's  house  in  his  country,  and  to  settle  on 
her  the  magistrate's  house  at  Ahlden  as  her  permanent  re- 
sidence in  case  of  his  demise.  The  retinue  and  personal 
attendants  and  guard  which  were  to  attend  the  Princess 
were  arranged,  and  it  was  agreed  that  no  changes  should  be 
made  without  the  approval  of  both  the  Elector  of  Hanover 
and  the  Duke  of  Celle.  The  Princess  was  to  be  allowed  a 
sufficient  establishment  for  her  maintenance  and  that  of  her 
suite.  Ernest  Augustus  was  to  allow  her  a  yearly  sum  of 
eight  thousand  thalers  (.£1,200),  and  he  agreed  to  raise  this 
sum  to  ,£1,800  when  her  father  died,  and  yet  again  by 
another  .£800  when  she  had  completed  her  fortieth  year — 
a  sum  total  of  ^"2,600  per  annum,  not  a  bad  allowance  when 
we  consider  the  value  of  money  in  those  days  and  the 
circumstances  of  the  case.  The  Princess,  moreover,  was 
heiress  to  considerable  property  from  her  mother,  which 
would  remain  untouched.  In  return,  Duke  George  William 
conceded  certain  modifications  of  his  daughter's  marriage 
settlement,  whereby  the  freehold  lands  he  had  bequeathed 
to  her  should  pass  directly  to  her  son,  Prince  George 
Augustus,  and  the  administration  of  the  same  should  pass 
into  the  hands  of  the  Electoral  Prince.  On  only  one  point 
were  the  brothers  unable  to  agree.  Duke  George  William 
proposed  that  the  love-letters  of  the  Princess  (the  incrim- 
inating correspondence  found  in  Konigsmarck's  rooms) 
should  be  sent  to  Celle,  after  the  divorce,  to  be  burnt,  or 
they  should  be  burnt  at  Hanover  in  the  presence  of  the 
ministers  of  Hanover  and  Celle.  This  suggestion  found  no 
favour  with  Ernest  Augustus,  who  put  the  matter  off  for 
the  time  being.  Doubtless  he  feared  that  his  brother  might 
relent  at  some  future  time  towards  his  daughter,  and  he 
did  not  wish  to  lose  this  damning  evidence  against  the 
Princess.1 

Thus  it  will  be  seen  that  everything  was  settled  before 
the  Divorce  Court  assembled,  and  the  verdict  was  treated 
as  a  foregone  conclusion.  The  ministers  drew  out  instruc- 

1  Some  of  these  letters  are  probably  those  now  at  Berlin  ;  others  probably 
at  Gmiinden. 


378        THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

tions  for  the  judges  and  attorneys,  and  watched  over  the 
trial  that  ensued  step  by  step. 

The  agreement  above  mentioned  was  signed  by  Duke 
George  William  and  the  Elector  Ernest  Augustus  on 
September  i,  1694,  and  a  few  days  later  the  Princess  was 
brought  over  from  Ahlden  to  the  magistrate's  house  at 
Lauenau,  in  Hanoverian  territory,  so  as  to  be  nearer  the 
scene  of  the  trial.  Even  this  slight  change  was  not  effected 
without  difficulty,  for  the  Princess  viewed  with  terror  any 
return  to  the  Principality  of  Hanover ;  but  she  was  pacified 
by  being  told  that  as  soon  as  the  divorce  was  decreed  she 
would  be  allowed  to  return  to  the  territory  of  Celle — she 
believed  as  a  free  woman.  This  made  her  all  the  more 
impatient  for  a  divorce  and  the  more  ready  to  concede 
anything  and  everything  demanded  by  her  enemies.  The 
story  that  the  Princess,  shortly  after  her  arrival  at  Lauenau, 
took  the  sacrament  in  the  presence  of  the  Hanoverian 
ministers,  solemnly  vowing  her  innocence  and  daring 
Countess  Platen  to  do  the  same,  is  very  dramatic,  but 
lacks  confirmation.  It  would  contradict  the  evidence  of 
the  few  genuine  documents  still  remaining,  which  go  to 
show  that  the  whole  policy  of  the  ministers  of  both  courts 
was  to  hush  up  any  allusion  to  a  criminal  intrigue. 

Everything  having  been  now  arranged,  the  tribunal  of 
the  Divorce  Court  began  its  solemn  farce.  The  court  was 
composed  of  a  president  and  eight  judges,  four  lay  and 
four  spiritual,  in  equal  numbers  from  Celle  and  Hanover 
respectively.  Privy  Councillor  Albert  Philip  von  Bussche 
was  appointed  President  by  both  Hanover  and  Celle.  All 
these  judges  were  sworn  by  a  special  oath  :  "  To  judge  in 
this  matter  uprightly  and  honestly  to  the  best  of  our 
understanding,  in  accordance  with  godly  and  worldly  rights 
and  the  custom  of  the  Christian  Evangelical  Church,  and 
not  to  let  ourselves  be  led  away  or  hindered  by  anything, 
whatever  its  name  may  be  ".  A  goodly  oath  indeed  ;  and 
yet  it  had  little  meaning  for  most  of  them,  though  some  of 
the  judges  had  qualms  of  conscience  and  did  not  prove 
quite  the  docile  tools  they  were  expected  to  be. 

On  September  20  the  Divorce  Court  assembled  at 
Hanover  and  received  the  suit  of  the  Electoral  Prince, 
who  prayed  for  a  dissolution  of  marriage  on  the  ground 
of  his  wife's  wilful  desertion  and  refusal  to  grant  him  his 


THE  DIVORCE  379 

connubial  rights.  This  was  duly  set  forth  in  a  formal 
document  presented  to  the  court  by  the  Prince's  attorney. 
After  considering  it  for  two  days  the  court  sent  it  to  the 
Princess  at  Lauenau,  and  requested  a  reply,  leaving  it  to 
her  option  to  decide  whether  she  would  submit  her  answer 
in  writing,  or  make  it  orally  by  word  of  mouth  to  a  deputa- 
tion of  the  court.  This  was  a  fair  proceeding,  and  guarded 
against  the  possibility  of  undue  influence,  but  it  did  not 
agree  with  the  ministerial  programme  ;  so  the  Government 
refused  to  sanction  the  alternative  of  an  oral  reply,  lest  the 
Princess  might  express  herself  too  freely  to  the  deputation. 
Marshal  von  Biilow,  of  Celle,  and  Thies,  the  attorney,  were 
therefore  directed  by  George  William  to  go  to  Lauenau 
instead,  and  obtain  a  written  declaration  from  the  Prin- 
cess in  harmony  with  the  policy  already  decided  upon. 
Biilow  was  instructed,  so  Duke  George  William's  directions 
read,  "  to  seek  an  opportunity  to  speak  to  the  Princess 
alone,  and  endeavour  to  remind  her  to  take  pains  before 
everything  else  to  express  her  answer  in  such  terms  as  to 
give  no  possible  further  cause  for  exasperation  \aigreur\ ". 
Further,  Thies  was  to  be  introduced  to  the  Princess  in 
order  to  learn  from  her  directly  "  whether  she  was  agree- 
able to  his  superseding  her  attorney's  functions,  which, 
being  the  case,  the  Princess  would  accede  to  him  full 
powers ".  Then  the  Princess  "  would  furnish  him  with 
materials  out  of  which  he  was  to  formulate  her  defence ; 
and  she  was,  among  other  matters,  to  declare  positively 
whether  she  would,  or  could,  ever  again  prevail  upon  her- 
self to  return  to  her  consort,  the  Electoral  Prince,  and,  if 
not,  whether  she  would  be  content  to  accept  the  verdict  of 
the  court  on  the  matter  ". 

The  result  of  this  mission  was  exactly  what  might 
have  been  expected.  The  Princess  was  quite  incapable  of 
looking  after  her  interests,  especially  in  this  case,  where 
they  seemed  to  run  counter  to  her  inclinations,  for  she 
desired  the  divorce  above  all  things,  and  fully  believed  that 
when  it  was  obtained  and  she  had  obeyed  her  father's  and 
her  uncle's  wishes  she  might  safely  trust  to  their  indulgence 
and  generosity.  Subsequent  events  proved  that  she  was 
wrong,  but  at  the  time  her  policy  seemed  the  right  one. 
She  authorised  the  attorney  to  act  for  her  as  directed,  and 
without  ado  signed  a  written  declaration,  declaring  in  most 


380   THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

emphatic  language  she  would  never  again  cohabit  with  her 
husband. 

The  Princess's  declaration  was  withheld  from  the  Divorce 
Court  until  it  had  been  examined  by  the  ministers.  Vice- 
Chancellor  Hugo  of  Hanover  expressed  himself  dissatisfied 
with  the  wording,  and  he  feared  the  Divorce  Court  would  not 
be  content.  He  therefore  drafted  another,  more  formally 
worded,  to  be  submitted  to  the  Princess. 

As  this  document  was  in  substance  the  same,  the  ducal 
brothers,  who  were  then  hunting  at  Gohre,  professed  in- 
difference as  to  which  should  be  presented  ;  but  Billow  put 
in  a  plea  for  the  consideration  of  the  Princess  on  the  ground 
that  she  might  be  confused  by  having  to  sign  another  de- 
claration. Bernstorff,  always  the  enemy  of  the  Princess, 
favoured  the  draft  of  Hugo,  because  it  would  have  the 
effect  "  of  inducing  the  court  to  imagine  that  the  Princess 
was  the  much  more  self-willed  and  not  to  be  overruled  "  ; 
and  he  went  on  to  write  to  Hugo  in  favour  of  his  draft, 
saying:  "It  shows  a  more  rebellious  spirit  \contu macia], 
and  the  court  will  on  that  account  have  all  the  more  cause 
to  give  a  verdict  of  divorce  ".  The  matter  was  referred  to 
Hugo,  who  naturally  decided  in  favour  of  his  own  draft. 
Thies,  the  Princess's  attorney,  was  then  directed  to  go 
again  to  Lauenau  and  obtain  the  Princess's  signature  to 
this  second  document.  He  was  instructed  to  exhort,  "in 
a  general  way,"  the  Princess  to  a  reconciliation  with  her 
husband  ;  but  that  the  admonition  was  regarded  as  a  mere 
form  may  be  gathered  from  the  fact  that  we  find  Bernstorff 
writing  :  "  Although  he  [Thies]  might  bring  the  most  power- 
ful arguments  to  bear  on  the  Princess's  case  in  order  to 
talk  her  over  to  return  to  her  husband,  he  would  effect 
nothing  whatever  ".  t  Bernstorff  s  surmise  was  quite  right ; 
the  Princess  was  only  too  ready  to  play  into  the  hands  of 
her  enemies,  and  Thies  found  her  most  impatient  at  the 
delay.  She  anxiously  asked  if  the  suit  would  result  in  a 
divorce.  Her  attorney  replied  that  a  definite  declaration 
was  necessary,  the  other  not  having  been  definite  enough. 
She  then  took  a  pen  and  resolutely  signed  the  new  docu- 
ment laid  before  her,  which  was  worded  as  follows  : — 

"  Now  we  [Sophie  Dorothea]  give  the  circumstances 
mentioned  by  the  attorney  of  our  Consort  Louis,  in  the 
charge  of  desertion  brought  against  us,  their  due  place ; 


THE  DIVORCE  381 

but  we  cannot  refrain  from  again  adding  that  we  adhere 
persistently  to  the  resolution,  once  drawn  up  and  constantly 
affirmed,  that  we  will  not,  and  cannot,  ever  again  live  in 
conjugal  relations  with  our  Consort  Louis,  Duke  of  Bruns- 
wick and  Liineburg,  Prince  Electoral,  and  we  will  therefore 
accept  the  verdict  of  the  court  on  the  matter  ". 

Thies  was  an  honourable  and  conscientious  man,  and 
had  his  doubts  as  to  the  wisdom  of  the  suicidal  policy  the 
Princess  was  pursuing.  He  therefore  entered  upon  his  task 
of  advising  the  Princess  without  seeming  to  persuade;  but 
she  would  not  hear  him.  He,  however,  told  her  frankly 
that  the  result  of  her  declaration  would  assuredly  be  a 
verdict  acquitting  the  Prince  and  allowing  him  to  marry 
again,  and  convicting  her  as  the  guilty  party,  and  forbidding 
her  to  marry.  The  Princess  answered  firmly  :  "  In  spite 
of  this,  my  determination  is  unalterable ".  Then  Thies 
added  a  clause  to  the  Princess's  declaration  stating  that : — 

"  In  spite  of  the  fact  that  all  suitable  and  urgent  advice 
from  higher  authorities  has  been  given  to  the  Princess,  and 
pressed  finally  by  myself  as  her  appointed  attorney,  yet 
it  must,  to  my  great  regret,  be  stated  that  nothing  more 
could  be  extracted  from  Her  Serene  Highness,  except  the 
written  declaration  enclosed  with  this  ". 

These  documents  were  then  sent  to  the  Divorce  Court. 

Despite  all  these  elaborate  stratagems  and  precautions, 
the  very  thing  happened  which  the  ministers  wished  to 
avoid.  The  Divorce  Court  refused  to  bs  satisfied  with  the 
written  declaration,  and  insisted  on  the  necessity  of  an  oral 
hearing.  To  this  end  a  deputation  of  the  judges  was  sent 
to  Lauenau,  that  they  might  hear  the  Princess's  declaration 
from  her  own  lips  and  judge  whether  any  undue  influence 
had  been  brought  to  bear  upon  her. 

The  ministers  of  both  Hanover  and  Celle  were  alarmed 
at  this  hitch  in  the  proceedings,  and  immediately  took  steps 
to  prevent  any  untoward  results.  Another  Conference  was 
summoned  at  Engesen  on  November  15. 

It  is  notoriously  difficult  to  save  those  who  are  bent  on 
their  own  destruction,  as  the  Princess  seemed  to  be ;  but 
in  the  meantime  the  Duchess  of  Celle  was  making  every 
effort  on  behalf  of  her  daughter,  and  seized  on  the  oppor- 
tunity afforded  by  this  delay  to  urge  some  concessions. 
The  result  was  that,  when  the  Conference  met  at  Engesen, 


382   THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

Bernstorff  brought  forward,  on  the  part  of  Duke  George 
William,  a  motion  to  the  effect  that  the  separation  should 
only  be  a  judicial  one  (i.e.,  a  mensd  et'thoro} ;  but  the  reason 
alleged — namely,  that  a  complete  separation  would  be 
prejudicial  to  the  children — did  not  make  the  slightest  im- 
pression on  the  Hanoverian  ministers,  who  saw  in  this  the 
hand  of  the  Duchess  of  Celle.  They  replied  with  some 
logic,  that  if  a  separation  of  that  kind  was  all  that  had  been 
desired,  it  might  have  been  arranged  by  the  parties  them- 
selves without  the  services  of  the  Divorce  Court ;  and  to 
make  such  a  change  so  late  in  the  day  would  cast  a  slight 
not  only  on  the  Electoral  Prince,  but  on  the  House  of 
Hanover.  Seeing  they  would  not  give  way,  Bernstorff 
changed  his  tactics,  and  put  in  a  plea  that  the  verdict 
might  at  least  not  be  made  public.  But  the  Hanoverian 
ministers  declared  that  such  a  course  would  lead  to  preju- 
dicial interpretations  ;  and  the  Conference  broke  up  without 
coming  to  an  agreement.  The  Elector  of  Hanover  strongly 
supported  his  ministers,  and  sent  to  Celle  the  following 
communication  : — 

"  That  because,  as  is  well  known,  it  was  decided  after 
careful  consideration  of  the  facts  to  bring  forward  a  suit  on 
the  charge  of  desertion,  that  the  honour  and  high  reputation 
of  the  Electoral  Prince  and  the  Princess  herself  and  their 
children  might  be  guarded,  and  also  of  that  of  our  most 
gracious  selves,  their  parents,  so  the  publication  of  the 
verdict  is  all  the  more  unavoidable,  as  otherwise  there 
would  be  every  opportunity  of  interpreting  the  cause  of  the 
separation  to  the  injury  and  prejudice  of  the  persons  just 
mentioned  on  both  sides  ". 

And  the  argument  went  on  to  say  that  it  would 
be  equally  prejudicial  to  the  children.  Thereupon  Duke 
George  William  gave  way,  and  the  Duchess  of  Celle  was 
beaten. 

This  interlude  also  goes  to  prove  that  the  verdict  of  the 
Divorce  Court  was  already  settled  by  the  higher  powers 
before  the  deputation  from  the  judges  went  to  Lauenau 
to  admonish  the  Princess.  The  deputation  consisted  of 
two  only,  Molanus  and  the  President  Bussche.  Molanus 
entered  upon  his  task  in  an  earnest  and  honourable  spirit. 
Bussche,  who  was  in  the  secret  confidence  of  the  ministers, 
contented  himself  with  platitudes  of  the  commonest  order. 


THE  DIVORCE  385 

Molanus,  who  was  a  worthy  divine,  treated  the  Princess  to 
a  long  dissertation  on  the  duties  of  holy  matrimony,  quoting 
to  her  the  First  Epistle  of  Saint  Paul  to  the  Corinthians 
vii.  10.  Coming  down  from  these  heights,  he  proceeded 
to  point  out  to  her,  as  her  attorney  had  already  done,  that, 
as  the  culpable  party,  she  would  not  be  permitted  to  make 
a  second  marriage,  though  the  privilege  would  be  allowed 
to  the  other  side.  He  also  reminded  her  of  what  her 
children  would  lose  when  deprived  of  their  mother,  and 
expatiated  on  the  grandeur  of  the  position  which  the 
Princess  was  abandoning.  He  suggested  that  the  dispute 
should  be  reconsidered  under  the  influence  of  fervent 
prayer,  at  which  a  minister  of  religion  might  assist.  But 
his  admonitions  and  his  prayers  made  absolutely  no  im- 
pression on  the  Princess,  who  declared  that  she  could  better 
serve  the  Almighty  by  remaining  alone,  and  she  was  thank- 
ful to  have  the  opportunity  of  withdrawing  from  the  world. 
She  insisted  that  under  no  circumstances  whatever  would 
she  return  to  the  court  of  Hanover,  or  to  the  Electoral 
Prince,  her  husband.  In  short  she  reaffirmed  verbally  and 
with  emphasis  the  declaration  she  had  already  made  in 
writing.  It  is  true  that  she  had  no  alternative,  for  every- 
thing had  been  settled  beforehand  ;  but  there  is  no  reason 
to  suppose  that  she  was  acting  under  compulsion,  as  all 
along  she  had  retained  a  fixed  desire  to  be  free  of  Hanover 
at  all  costs.  Yet,  even  so,  the  Divorce  Court  refused  to  be 
satisfied.  They  were  conscious  of  the  doubtful  legality  of 
the  proceedings,  and  they  were  desirous  of  guarding  their 
honour  and  saving  appearances  as  far  as  possible.  So  the 
Princess  had,  for  the  third  time,  to  sign  a  written  declara- 
tion to  the  effect  that : — 

"  We  adhere  firmly  to  the  resolution  already  expressed 
by  us  in  writing,  that  our  attorney  shall  not  oppose  any- 
thing further  that  may  be  urged  against  us,  but  shall  adhere 
to  our  previous  resolution,  and  strive  to  bring  the  matter 
to  a  speedy  issue  ". 

The  Divorce  Court  met  again  on  December  I,  and  the 
Princess's  reply  and  the  report  of  the  deputation  were 
formally  handed  in.  These  papers  were  submitted  to  the 
Prince's  attorney,  and  it  was  asked  if  His  Highness  per- 
sisted in  his  suit.  Two  days  later  the  Prince's  reply  was 
handed  in.  The  substance  of  it  was  as  follows  : — 


384   THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

That  His  Highness  had  given  this  most  important 
matter,  with  all  the  consequences  it  might  entail,  his  most 
careful  consideration.  It  was  only  with  painful  feelings  he 
could  decide  to  take  this  extreme  course,  and  he  had  left 
no  stone  unturned  to  bring  the  Princess  to  a  better  frame 
of  mind,  and  his  father  and  father-in-law  had  also  given 
themselves  personally  the  greatest  trouble  about  it.  But 
as  nothing  had  been  effected  by  this  means,  and  the  issue 
proved  that  the  Princess  adhered  to  her  resolution,  and 
her  purposed  desertion  had  been  quite  clearly  proved,  the 
Prince  felt  bound  to  maintain  the  petition  expressed  in  his 
suit. 

The  sword  was  now  ready  to  fall,  but  at  the  eleventh 
hour  the  Duchess  of  Celle  made  one  more  effort  on  behalf 
of  her  daughter.  We  find  that  Duke  George  William 
entered  a  request  for  a  lightening  of  the  intended  verdict. 
He  took  exception  to  the  demand  of  the  court  of  Hanover 
that  the  sentence  of  the  court  should  expressly  forbid  the 
Princess  to  marry  again,  and  so  threatening  was  his  tone 
that  the  judges  began  to  hesitate  about  complying  with 
the  Hanoverian  orders,  and  the  verdict  was  postponed.  In 
order  to  break  down  this  opposition  of  the  Duke  of  Celle, 
Vice-Chancellor  Hugo,  who  held  a  brief  for  Hanover,  drew 
up  a  long  legal  opinion  for  the  direction  of  the  Divorce 
Court,  and  sent  it  to  Bernstorff  at  Celle  for  approval  and 
return.  This  document  is  very  interesting.  The  first  part 
of  the  "  opinion "  deals  wholly  with  legal  matters ;  the 
second  part,  which  considers  the  peculiar  arguments  of 
the  case  from  the  dynastic  point  of  view  of  the  court 
of  Hanover,  may  be  quoted  in  full  : — 

"  i.  The  Princess  has  given  evidence  of  wicked  inten- 
tions, of  her  purposed  flight  from  the  country  in  secret, 
thereby  bringing  the  House  into  everlasting  shame  and  dis- 
grace. It  would  not  have  been  possible  for  this  to  occur, 
unless  very  bitter  opponents  who  were  interested  in  the  ruin 
of  the  House  had  seized  the  opportunity  to  make  use  of  her 
•evil  designs  in  their  schemes. 

"  The  House  has  been  thereby  cast  into  such  disorder 
and  danger  as  cannot  be  contemplated  without  a  shudder. 
We  must  thank  the  kindness  of  Providence  for  having  pre- 
vented it,  and  in  addition  consider  what  is  to  be  expected 
in  the  future  from  a  person  who  has  ventured  already  on  so 


THE  DIVORCE  385 

desperate  a  scheme,  and  how  extremely  necessary  it  is  to 
place  not  only  practical,  but  legal,  restraints  upon  her,  which 
are  best  carried  out  by  expressly  forbidding  her  again  to 
marry  :  there  will  thus  be  the  less  occasion  for  cavilling. 

"  2.  The  judges  forming  the  deputation  have  reported 
how  strongly  the  Princess  desired  the  sentence  of  separa- 
tion and  what  joy  she  manifested  on  learning  that  it  might 
soon  be  passed.  It  may  be  conjectured  that  if  she  had  been 
of  a  good  disposition  she  would  have  been  deeply  grieved 
at  causing  her  own  father  so  much  pain,  and  bringing  such 
injury  on  those  who  showered  kindness  and  affection  on 
her.  She  ought  further  to  consider  how  she  will  fall  from 
her  high  position.  She  ought  also  to  show  compassion  for 
her  children.  But  when  a  mother  displays  joy  over  her 
separation  from  her  children,  we  may  gather  what  is  to  be 
expected  of  her.1 

"It  is  known,  that  before  she  conceived  these  evil  de- 
signs, she  had  on  different  occasions  expressed  a  longing  to 
be  a  marchioness  of  France  (these  are  people  of  no  particu- 
lar worth)  rather  than  Princess  of  Brunswick-Liineburg,  for 
then  she  would  be  able  to  amuse  herself  better,  whereas 
she  was  at  present  as  good  as  a  prisoner.  Such  a  disposi- 
tion is  easily  concealed  for  a  time,  but  difficult  to  overcome. 
What  can  we  opine  from  so  intense  a  craving  for  a  separa- 
tion except  that  her  intention  is  to  seek  some  such  position 
as  that  she  has  already  hoped  for  ?  And  such  a  course  is 
all  the  more  to  be  expected  of  her  should  we  not  refuse  her 
the  right  to  marry  again  in  the  judicial  verdict." 

Kocher  (in  whose  article  in  Sybd's  Historische  Zeitschrift 
this  is  quoted)  goes  on  to  say:  "  In  place  of  the  third  and 
fourth  arguments,  which  are  crossed  out  in  the  copy  before 
me,  the  following  is  interpolated  in  Hugo's  handwriting : 
'  There  are  still  more  serious  considerations,  which,  however, 
cannot  be  well  discussed  '.  The  original  words,  however, 
which  can  be  deciphered  pretty  clearly  under  the  thick  lines, 
are : — 

"  3.  She  has  an  indulgent  mother,  who  does  not  grasp 
the  position  of  affairs,  nor  judge  of  them  correctly,  and  who 
shows  peculiarly  little  affection  for  this  Electoral  House. 

1  But  Sophie  Dorothea  thought  she  would  be  allowed  to  see  her  children 
occasionally  after  the  divorce.  She  had  no  idea  that  her  retirement  involved 
perpetual  imprisonment. 

25 


386   THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

"  4.  The  Princess  looks  forward  to  a  very  large  fortune 
from  her  mother.  Her  father  also  is  not  likely  to  forget 
her. 

"5.  [In  short]  We  must  be  on  our  guard  against  the 
enemies  of  the  House,  and  give  them  as  little  occasion  as 
possible  for  gaining  a  hold  on  us. 

"6.  [To  much  the  same  effect,  with  arguments  ad  Deum 
thrown  in.]  " 

The  "  opinion "  concludes  with  an  apostrophe  to  the 
judges  : — 

"  This  most  lofty  House  has  placed  its  safety  and 
dignity  in  your  hands,  my  lord  judges,  confiding  in  your 
prudence.  Your  country  and  innocent  people  have  ex- 
posed the  dangers  assailing  them  to  you,  and  demand  your 
aid  for  their  security,"  etc.,  etc. 

It  was  therefore  mainly  the  fear  of  the  influence  of  the 
Duchess  of  Celle,  as  well  as  doubt  of  the  vacillating  spirit 
of  Duke  George  William,  which  made  the  Hanoverian 
government  determined  to  bind  the  heiress  of  Celle  as 
tightly  as  possible,  and  this  document  shows  how  anxious 
they  were.  For  some  days  no  answer  was  returned  from 
Celle,  and  Hugo  wrote  two  or  three  times,  begging  for  a 
reply.  It  was  the  final  duel  between  the  Duchess  of  Celle 
and  BernstorfT,  with  Duke  George  William  between ;  and 
the  Duchess  got  the  worst  of  it,  for.  after  considerable 
hesitation,  the  Duke  gave  way. 

It  is  not  possible  to  follow  the  exact  order  of  the  pro- 
ceedings ;  but  that  the  Duchess  was  beaten  is  obvious  from 
the  fact  that  on  December  15  Thies  handed  in  the  final 
reply  of  the  Princess,  and  as  he  repeated  again  the  Princess's 
declaration  we  must  conclude  that  an  understanding  had 
been  arrived  at.  The  verdict,  which  was  delivered  imme- 
diately, shows  that  the  Princess's  enemies  had  won.  It  runs 
as  follows : — 

"  In  the  matrimonial  suit  of  the  illustrious  Prince  George 
Louis,  Electoral  Prince  of  Hanover,  against  his  consort,  the 
illustrious  Princess  Sophie  Dorothea,  etc.,  we,  constituted 
president  and  judges  of  the  Matrimonial  Court  of  the 
Electorate  and  Duchy  of  Brunswick-Liineburg,  declare  and 
pronounce  judgment.  After  attempts  have  been  tried  and 
have  failed  to  settle  the  matter  amicably,  and  in  accordance 


THE  DIVORCE  387 

with  the  documents  and  verbal  declarations  of  the  Princess 
and  other  detailed  circumstances,  we  agree  that  her  con- 
tinued denial  of  matrimonial  duty  and  cohabitation  is  well 
founded,  and  consequently  that  it  is  to  be  considered  as 
an  intentional  desertion.  In  consequence  whereof  we  have 
considered  sentence,  and  now  declare  the  ties  of  matrimony 
to  be  entirely  dissolved  and  annulled.  Since  in  similar 
cases  of  desertion  it  has  been  permitted  to  the  innocent 
party  to  re-marry,  while  the  other  is  forbidden,  the  same 
judicial  power  will  be  exercised  in  the  present  instance  in 
favour  of  His  Serene  Highness  the  Electoral  Prince. 

"  (Published  in  the  Consistorial  Court  of  Hanover, 
December  28,  1694.)  " 

This  sentence  was  signed  by  the  president  and  all  the 
judges,  and  delivered  to  the  Princess  at  Lauenau  on  De- 
cember 31.  The  same  day — the  last  day  of  that  evil  year 
— she  formally  signified  her  acceptance  of  the  verdict. 

The  result  of  the  trial  was  duly  communicated  to  the 
representatives  of  Hanover  and  Celle  at  foreign  courts,  and 
from  that  time  the  Princess  was  politically  dead.  Her  name 
was  never  mentioned  in  the  Electoral  court  of  Hanover ; 
it  was  struck  out  of  the  Church  prayers,  and  expunged 
from  official  documents.  Thrust  out  from  the  Hanoverian 
court,  she  found  her  father's  court  also  closed  to  her,  and 
she  entered  upon  her  long  captivity  of  thirty- two  years — a 
captivity  from  which  death  alone  was  to  bring  release. 


CHAPTER  XXVI. 

THE  PRISONER  OF  AHLDEN. 

Oh  !  give  me  liberty — 

For  were  ev'n  Paradise  my  prison, 

Still  I  should  long  to  leap  the  crystal  walls. 

DRYDEN. 

FOR  two  months  after  the  divorce  the  Princess  was  detained 
at  Lauenau,  in  the  Principality  of  Hanover,  despite  the 
stipulation  Duke  George  William  had  made  that,  when  the 
trial  was  ended,  his  daughter  should  be  sent  back  at  once 
to  his  keeping  in  the  territory  of  Celle.  Various  reasons 
caused  this  delay,  which  amounted  to  a  breach  of  contract, 
the  chief  being  the  fear  that  the  Duke  of  Celle  would  relent 
towards  his  daughter. 

So  far,  the  Hanoverian  government  had  won  all  along 
the  line.  They  had  got  rid  of  the  Princess  and  had  kept 
her  property,  and  they  were  determined  that  nothing  should 
upset  so  admirable  an  arrangement  for  them.  It  was  known 
that  the  Duchess  of  Celle  was  moving  heaven  and  earth  on 
behalf  of  the  unhappy  Princess  (nor  did  she  cease  her  efforts 
as  long  as  she  lived),  and  it  was  feared  that  if  she  and 
Sophie  Dorothea  came  together  the  Duke  might  be  per- 
suaded into  seeing  his  daughter,  and  then  all  would  be 
undone.  Moreover,  there  was  a  strong  party  at  Celle,  in- 
cluding many  persons  of  rank  and  influence,  who  loudly 
declared  that  their  Princess  had  been  hardly  and  unfairly 
treated,  and  they  were  ready  to  promote  an  agitation  in  her 
favour  and  to  question  the  legality  of  her  divorce,  certainly 
of  her  imprisonment.  Popular  demonstrations  at  Celle 
were  things  to  be  avoided  by  those  who  desired  the  union 
of  the  Duchies,  and  it  was  determined  to  keep  the  Princess 
locked  up  in  Hanover  territory  until  the  excitement  had 
cooled  down. 

The  behaviour  of  the  Elector  and  Electress  and  all  the 
Electoral  family,  throughout  this  unhappy  affair,  was  callous 


THE  PRISONER  OF  AHLDEN  389 

in  the  extreme.  It  would  only  have  been  seemly  if,  after 
a  painful  family  scandal  such  as  this,  the  Electoral  court 
had  gone  into  retirement  for  a  time  ;  but  the  annual  car- 
nival and  festivities  took  place  at  Hanover  as  if  nothing 
had  happened.  Nor  did  the  death  of  Queen  Mary  II.  of 
England,  though  it  put  the  Electoral  court  into  mourning 
and  advanced  the  Electress  Sophia  one  step  nearer  the 
English  throne,  make  any  difference  to  the  pleasure-loving 
Hanoverians.1 

The  solitary  confinement  of  the  Princess  at  Lauenau 
gave  her  ample  time  for  reflection,  and  she  gradually  awoke 
to  a  sense  of  her  position.  The  murder  of  her  lover  had 
stunned  her  for  a  time,  and  her  passionate  grief  at  his  loss 
had  almost  robbed  her  of  reason.  The  desire  to  break 
absolutely  with  Hanover,  where  she  had  suffered  so  much 
misery  and  insult,  amounted  to  a  mania,  and  this,  added 
to  the  fact  that  "  everything  was  known,"  had  led  her 
into  acquiescence  with  anything  and  everything  that  had 
been  proposed  to  her.  She  now  began  to  see  that  she  had 
been  betrayed  into  forfeiting  her  interests,  and  had  con- 
sented to  a  divorce,  and  the  surrender  of  her  property  and 
rank,  without  insisting  upon  adequate  guarantees.  She,  all 
along,  had  been  given  to  understand  by  her  attorney  and 
the  ministers  who  visited  her  that,  when  once  the  divorce 
was  accomplished,  she  would  be  free,  allowed  to  return  to 
the  territory  of  Celle,  and  given  an  establishment  where 
she  could  live  in  retirement,  which  was  all  she  now  desired. 
Her  father's  anger,  she  hoped,  would  be  mollified  by  her 
submission  ;  but  her  hope  turned  out  to  be  vain.  That 
she  would  be  shut  out  from  his  court,  kept  a  strict  prisoner, 
and  forbidden  to  even  see  her  mother  did  not  enter  her 
mind.  Too  late  she  saw  that  she  had  been  entrapped  into 
a  false  position. 

There  is  no  doubt  that  this  harsh  treatment  of  Sophie 
Dorothea  was  thoroughly  approved  by  the  Electress 
Sophia  (if,  indeed,  it  was  not  in  some  respects  instigated 
by  her),  who  in  this  connection  appears  in  a  most  un- 
amiable  light.  Knowing  what  manner  of  man  her  son 
was,  she  might  have  made  some  allowance  for  his  unhappy 

1  "  The  Carnaval  here  is  very  provoking,  but  they  cannot  live  without  it  ; 
they  are  a  sort  of  people  that  can  rejoice  even  in  their  own  disgraces." 
— Cresset's  Despatch,  Hanover,  January  n,  1695. 


390    THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

young  wife ;  but  she  had  no  feeling  for  her  save  hatred 
and  contempt.  Her  letters  to  her  niece,  the  Duchess  of 
Orleans,  at  this  period  are  missing  (they  have  evidently 
been  purposely  destroyed)  ;  but  the  letters  of  the  Duchess 
to  the  Electress  are  still  extant,  and  have  been  published. 
They  are,  for  the  most  part,  replies  to  her  aunt's  letters, 
and  are  an  echo  of  the  hatred  with  which  the  Electress 
Sophia  pursued  the  disgraced  daughter  of  the  d'Olbreuse. 
Elizabeth  Charlotte  calls  the  Princess  "a  miserable  crea- 
ture, who  deserves  every  misfortune " ;  she  denounces  her 
"  wicked  tongue,"  and  describes  her  as  "  a  person  as  mali- 
cious as  she  is  frivolous,"  her  frivolity  being  an  inheritance 
from  her  French  mother,  whose  bad  training  of  her  daugh- 
ter was  the  fount  of  all  her  misfortunes. 

Incredible  though  it  may  seem,  both  the  Electress  and 
her  niece  took  the  part  of  the  Countess  Platen,  and  defended 
her  against  the  defamatory  rumours  that  were  flying  about. 
The  part  the  Countess  had  played  in  the  murder  of  Konigs- 
marck  and  the  consequent  ruin  of  the  Princess  were  matters 
of  common  gossip  at  every  court  of  Europe,  and  her  conduct 
universally  reprobated.  King  Louis  questioned  Elizabeth 
Charlotte  about  it  at  table  at  Versailles ;  but  the  Duchess 
denied  everything,  and  writes  to  her  aunt  that  she  told 
the  King  :  "  So  far  as  concerns  Countess  Platen,  I  believe, 
from  what  I  had  heard  of  the  Princess  and  from  my  own 
knowledge  of  the  Countess,  that  the  former  is  a  much  more 
evil-minded  person  than  the  latter,  whom  I  believe  to  be  a 
very  good  sort  of  person  ". 

Again  we  find  the  Duchess  of  Orleans  writing  : — 
"  There  is  no  likelihood  that  the  Countess  Platen  would 
have  degraded  herself  with  so  young  a  man  as  Konigs- 
marck.  I  am  much  more  inclined  to  believe  that  she  flat- 
tered him  in  the  hope  of  making  a  match  between  him  and 
her  daughter,  for  he  was  a  good  catch.  It  may  be,  however, 
that  Konigsmarck  wished,  from  motives  of  vanity,  to  make 
the  former  think  that  all  women  were  in  love  with  him,  in 
order  that  his  society  might  be  the  more  acceptable  to  her,  for 
all  young  fellows  are  generally  vain  ;  and  when  the  Princess 
afterwards  found  herself  betrayed,  she  imagined  that  the 
Countess  was  the  cause  of  it.  I  am  sorry  for  the  Countess, 
who  it  seems  has  taken  the  matter  so  much  to  heart  that 
she  has  got  ill.  Such  slanders,  when  not  true,  should  be 


THE  PRISONER  OF  AHLDEN  391 

simply  despised  and  laughed  at,  and  not  taken  seriously. 
It  is  miserable  to  see  oneself  so  badly  treated  by  the  very 
persons  whom  one  imagined  held  one  dear,  and  I  am  not 
surprised  that  the  Countess  has  taken  it  to  heart." 

The  Countess  Platen  was  ill  not  only  in  body,  but  in 
mind.  Her  reputation  had  .suffered  a  severe  blow,  and, 
despite  the  protection  of  the  Elector  and  the  aegis  of  the 
Electress,  a  number  of  personages  about  the  court  looked 
coldly  upon  her.  Both  Konigsmarck  and  the  Princess  were 
popular,  and  many  official  people  among  the  Hanoverian 
nobility  shunned  the  woman  whom  they  believed  to  have 
been  the  cause  of  the  death  of  the  one  and  the  ruin  of  the 
other,  while  at  Celle  her  name  was  held  in  execration.  All 
this  served  to  enrage  the  Countess  the  more  against  the 
imprisoned  Princess,  and  she  did  all  she  could  to  prevent 
any  mitigation  of  her  punishment.  In  this  she  was  sup- 
ported by,  the  Electress  Sophia.  Schaumann  indeed  holds 
the  Electress  primarily  responsible  for  all  the  Princess's 
troubles,  and  declares  that :  "  The  presence  of  the  Princess 
Sophie  Dorothea  in  Hanover  was  from  the  first  impossible 
and  untenable  on  account  of  the  unquenchable  hatred  and 
scorn  which  the  Electress  Sophia,  her  mother-in-law,  evinced 
towards  her  ".  We  have  seen  that  the  Electress  Sophia 
was  capable  of  dissembling  this  hatred  and  of  acting  with 
outward  consideration  to  her  daughter-in-law ;  but  the  mo- 
ment she  caught  her  tripping,  all  her  latent  enmity  blazed 
forth,  and  she  rejoiced  to  see  the  Hanoverian  court  rid  of 
the  daughter  of  her  hated  rival.  The  Princess  had  fallen 
through  her  own  folly,  and  now  was  the  time  to  trample 
on  her.  To  the  hatred  of  these  two  women,  the  wife  and 
the  mistress  of  the  Elector,  must  be  attributed  many  of 
the  rigours  of  Sophie  Dorothea's  imprisonment,  and  her 
detention  at  Lauenau. 

At  last,  owing  to  the  persistent  efforts  of  the  Duchess 
of  Celle,  who  was  never  tired  of  pointing  out  to  her  husband 
the  breach  of  contract  involved  in  the  Elector's  keeping  the 
Princess  in  Hanoverian  territory,  the  captive  was  removed 
from  Lauenau  to  Ahlden,  where  she  had  been  confined  for 
some  weeks  prior  to  the  divorce.1 

1 "  The  unlucky  Princess  is  still  in  this  country  and  they  talk  of  removing 
her  suddenly  into  her  father's  territory." — Knatchbull's  (secretary  to  Cresset) 
Despatch,  Hanover,  February  22,  1695. 


392    THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

On  February  28,  1695,  the  Princess  left  Lauenau  and 
returned  under  strong  escort  to  the  castle  of  Ahlden,  which 
had  meantime  been  prepared  for  her  reception.  According 
to  the  arrangement  arrived  at  between  the  two  brothers  at 
Engesen,  on  her  arrival  there  she  was  formally  given  the 
rank  and  title  of  "  Duchess  of  Ahlden,"  and  was  accorded 
a  suite  of  attendants,  a  military  escort  of  cavalry  and 
infantry,  and  a  governor  of  the  castle.  There  was  yielded 
to  her  an  outward  semblance  of  honour ;  but  in  reality  the 
title  was  a  blind  to  conceal  her  real  position  from  the  world, 
the  suite  were  spies,  the  escort  and  the  governor  her  jailers. 

Except  for  one  brief  interlude  of  a  few  months'  duration, 
Ahlden  was  henceforth  the  Princess's  residence  and  prison 
to  the  day  of  her  death — more  than  thirty  years  later.  A 
description  of  the  place  may  therefore  be  of  interest.  With 
a  view  to  writing  this  book,  I  visited  Ahlden  on  September 
10,  1898,  and  made  the  following  notes  the  evening  of  the 
same  day : — 

"  It  was  not  without  difficulty  that  I  discovered  Schloss 
Ahlden  was  still  in  existence  ;  many  people  in  Hanover 
had  never  heard  of  it.  I,  at  last,  found  that  there  was  a 
village  of  Ahlden,  with  a  magistrate's  house  still  standing, 
near  the  country  town  of  Walsrode,  some  twenty  miles  from 
Hanover ;  and  the  nearest  station  was  Reitlagen.  Acting 
on  this  information,  a  friend  and  myself  set  out  from  Hanover 
at  7  A.M.  by  the  local  train  to  Reitlagen.  At  that  early 
hour  we  were  almost  the  only  passengers,  and  the  plain, 
over  which  the  single  line  of  railway  ran,  was  enveloped  in 
a  thick  mist.  We  travelled  very  slowly,  stopping  every  few 
minutes  at  some  little  wayside  station.  A  bell  was  fixed 
to  the  engine  to  warn  stray  cattle  off  the  line,  and  as  we 
went  through  the  fog  it  tolled  like  a  funeral  knell.  By-and- 
by  the  mist  began  to  lift,  and  we  saw  we  were  traversing 
a  flat,  marshy  country.  There  were  reeds,  thistles,  flags 
and  rushes  in  the  grass  fields,  and  a  good  deal  of  common 
land,  on  which  nothing  but  scrub  and  brushwood  seemed 
to  grow.  About  nine  o'clock  the  train  pulled  up  at  the  little 
station  of  Reitlagen.  Here  we  found  a  conveyance  to  take 
us  to  Ahlden,  which  was  said  to  be  some  five  miles  distant ; 
it  proved  to  be  much  nearer. 

"  By  this  time  the  mists  had  lifted,  the  sun  was  shining 


THE  PRISONER  OF  AHLDEN  393 

brilliantly.  As  we  drove  along  the  dusty  road,  bordered 
by  poplars  and  limes,  we  passed  a  cottage  or  two  with 
gardens  full  of  plum-trees  laden  with  purple  fruit,  and 
>every  now  and  then  a  patch  of  yellow  lupin.  The  land 
was  for  the  most  part  rough  pasture,  and  the  country 
reminded  me  of  the  fen  districts  of  Cambridgeshire,  and  a 
windmill  and  a  flight  of  plover  served  to  strengthen  the 
resemblance.  We  drove  across  the  Aller,  which  shone  like 
steel  under  the  cloudless  sky,  and  then  suddenly,  long  be- 
fore we  anticipated,  we  saw  a  red  roof  peeping  out  among 
the  trees  on  the  south  bank  of  the  river,  and  the  driver 
pointed  with  his  whip  and  said,  '  There  is  Schloss  Ahlden '. 
In  the  distance  the  castle  looked  like  a  fair-sized  English 
manor-house,  but  on  closer  inspection  it  proved  to  be 
something  different.  The  moat  had  long  since  been  filled 
up,  and  the  drawbridge  yielded  place  to  a  short  avenue  of 
limes  ;  but  the  square  entrance-gateway  still  remained,  and 
externally  the  castle  was  little  changed. 

"  Above  the  gateway  was  the  date  of  the  building  of 
•the  castle — 1613 — and  an  elaborate  coat-of-arms,  carved 
in  stone,  supported  by  figures  of  Piety  and  Justice.  The 
irony  of  it!  There  was  little  of  either  piety  or  justice  in 
the  treatment  meted  out  to  the  hapless  captive  who  gave 
the  castle  its  sole  title  to  fame.  There  was  also  an  in- 
scription to  show  that  it  was  erected  by  Duke  Christian 
•of  Brunswick- Liineburg  as  the  magistrate's  house  of  the 
district. 

"  Passing  under  the  arched  gateway,  rudely  painted 
with  frescoes,  we  found  ourselves  in  a  grass-grown  quad- 
rangle :  one  wing  only,  the  left  as  we  entered,  had  been 
inhabited  by  the  Princess  Sophie  Dorothea. 

"  Entering  the  doorway  in  the  centre  of  the  wing,  we 
mounted  a  wooden  staircase,  traversed  a  corridor  with  a 
rough  floor  and  whitewashed  walls,  and  presently  found 
ourselves  in  the  Princess's  apartments.  They  consisted  of 
a  bedroom  and  sitting-room  of  moderate  size,  say  twenty- 
two  feet  by  sixteen,  leading  from  one  another,  with  a  bare 
ceiling  and  wooden  floor.  The  rooms  were  destitute  of 
furniture,  and  we  were  told  that  they  had  never  been 
used  since  the  Princess  died  in  them.  The  sleeping-room 
had  two  windows,  looking  over  the  garden  towards  the 
village,  and  an  alcove  for  the  bed.  The  sitting-room  had 


3Q4   THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

two  windows  also,  looking  across  the  Aller  over  the  marsh- 
land. Beyond  these  apartments  was  a  larger  room,  now 
partitioned,  which  had  served  as  a  dining-hall  for  the  suite 
and  attendants.  The  Princess  was  permitted,  if  she  wished,, 
to  dine  with  her  household,  and  sat  at  the  head  of  the 
table.  The  rest  of  the  wing  was  occupied  by  her  suite. 

"  Another  side  of  the  quadrangle  was  the  magistrate's 
house,  then  inhabited  by  the  Governor ;  a  third  served  as 
barracks  for  the  military  guard  ;  and  the  fourth  as  out- 
houses and  stables.  In  reality  the  Princess  had  for  her 
own  personal  use  only  two  small  rooms,  and  the  whole 
building  was  no  larger  than  a  moderate-sized  English 
country-house.  Even  as  we  saw  it  on  a  bright  Septem- 
ber morning  it  was  indescribably  dreary:  in  the  winter,, 
with  the  mists  and  floods,  it  must  be  a  veritable  '  House  on 
the  Marsh,'  and  to  the  poor  prisoner  who  wore  her  life  out 
there,  it  must  have  seemed  a  '  Castle  of  Despair '. 

"  The  castle  is  in  tolerable  repair,  and  is  still  used  as  the 
magistrate's  house  of  the  district,  and  justice  is  dispensed 
there  at  stated  times.  The  magistrate  no  longer  resides 
there.  It  is  in  charge  of  a  castellan,  who  is  also  a  farmer 
and  carpenter  in  the  village.  We  found  this  official  cour- 
teous and  willing  to  give  us  any  information  he  possessed,, 
which  unfortunately  was  not  much. 

"  There  are  absolutely  no  relics  of  the  Princess  remain- 
ing at  Ahlden,  for  the  Hanoverian  government,  after  her 
death,  did  everything  to  stamp  out  her  name  and  her 
memory.  Her  picture,  which  hung  in  the  castle  for  many 
years,  was  sent  to  Herrenhausen.  Only  fifteen  years  ago- 
two  large  boxes  of  papers  at  Ahlden,  said  to  have  belonged 
to  her,  were  ordered  to  be  sent  to  Hanover.  They  were 
put  on  a  cart,  to  be  despatched  from  Reitlagen  by  train,, 
but  on  the  way  to  the  station  they  mysteriously  disap- 
peared. Whether  they  dropped  out  of  the  cart,  or  whether 
they  were  stolen  none  can  say  ;  they  have  not  been  heard 
of  from  that  day  until  now.  We  were  told  this  by  the 
castellan,  who  assumed  an  air  of  mystery  on  this  and  other 
matters.  He  pointed  out  to  us  the  window  from  which  the 
unfortunate  Princess  was  said  to  gaze  with  wistful  eyes  for 
hours  together  across  the  marsh,  looking  for  the  deliverance 
that  never  came.  Year  in  and  year  out,  for  thirty  years 
and  more,  she  would  gaze  from  this  window,  while  youth. 


THE  PRISONER  OF  AHLDEN  39^ 

went  by,  and  middle  age  went  by,  and  old  age  crept  ori,. 
until  one  November  morning  she  wa's  seen  no  more. 

"  From  the  castle  we  walked  down  the  village  street  to 
the  little  Lutheran  church — a  plain,  ugly  building,  part  of 
which  is  ancient,  but  most  of  it  built  during  Sophie  Doro- 
thea's residence  at  Ahlden.  We  saw  the  organ  which  the 
Princess  gave  to  the  church,  which  bears  the  inscription, 

PRESENTED  BY  H.S.H.  THE  DUCHESS  SOPHIE 
DOROTHEA,   1721 

and  we  were  pointed  out  the  place  which  she  was  said  to- 
have  occupied  when  she  attended  divine  worship,  a  wooden 
pew  in  the  second  gallery.  Most  authorities  say  that  she 
was  never  permitted  to  enter  the  church,  and  a  minister 
attended  her  in  the  castle  ;  but  local  tradition  contradicts 
this  statement,  the  truth  probably  being  that  at  first  she 
was  not  permitted,  but  when  the  stringency  of  her  prison 
rules  was  relaxed  a  little  she  was  allowed  to  attend  public 
worship.  It  is  said  that  she  was  conducted  to  and  from 
the  church,  only  a  few  yards  from  the  castle  gate,  by  an 
escort.  She  was  not  allowed  to  walk  about  the  village, 
only  in  the  castle  garden,  which  is  very  small,  hardly  larger 
than  a  prison  yard,  and  bounded  on  one  side  by  the  Aller,. 
and  on  the  other  by  the  moat  and  marsh.  She  was  per- 
mitted to  drive  a  distance  of  six  miles  from  the  castle, 
along  a  certain  road  to  the  west.  There  is  a  stone  bridge 
on  the  way  to  Hayden  which  marked  the  six-mile  limit 
of  the  drive.  The  Princess  was  never  allowed  to  cross  this- 
bridge,  nor  could  she  drive  along  any  other  road  but  this. 
Thus  far  and  no  farther  could  she  go ;  this  way  and  none 
other  for  thirty  years.  How  tired  she  must  have  got  of  it  T 
When  the  weather  was  fine  she  drove  herself  in  a  cabriolet,, 
and  when  it  was  cold,  or  wet,  she  was  driven  in  a  closed 
carriage.  She  was  always  accompanied  by  a  lady-in-wait- 
ing and  a  guard  of  soldiers.  She  was  fond  of  driving  very 
fast,  and  would  tear  furiously  up  and  down  the  road,  which 
she  would  traverse  many  times. 

"  Local  tradition  among  the  peasants  of  Ahlden  still 
hands  down  the  picture  of  the  mysterious  great  lady  of  the 
castle,  always  beautifully  dressed,  and  with  diamonds  gleam- 
ing in  her  dark  hair,  galloping  up  and  down  the  road,  followed 
by  an  escort  of  cavalry  with  drawn  swords. 


396   THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

"The  village  of  Ahlden  has  to-day  some  thousand 
inhabitants.  The  oak-trees  and  red-tiled  roofs  give  it  the 
appearance  of  a  Hampshire  village,  but  the  country  around 
is  like  Norfolk  at  its  flattest  and  dreariest.  The  village  is 
made  up  of  three  or  four  irregular  streets,  two  or  three  beer- 
houses, and  a  large  school.  The  memory  of  the  '  Duchess 
•of  Ahlden '  still  lingers  among  the  village  folk  ;  they  sell 
postcards  with  her  portrait  on  them,  and  speak  with  pity  of 
her  fate. 

"  Certain  authorities  at  Hanover  warned  me  that  I  should 
find  absolutely  nothing  at  Ahlden  and  my  visit  would  be  a 
waste  of  time.  On  the  contrary,  I  found  the  place  full  of 
interest  and  rich  in  tradition.  Without  seeing  Ahlden  it  is 
impossible  to  realise  the  utter  loneliness  of  this  poor  lady's 
thirty-two  years  of  confinement  there." 

There  were  three  governors  at  Ahlden  during  the  years 
•of  the  Princess's  captivity.  The  first,  the  Seigneur  de  la 
Portiere,  a  noble  of  Celle,  until  1702  ;  then  Charles  Augustus 
von  Bothmer,  a  Hanoverian  noble,  from  1702  to  1721  ;  and 
Sigismund,  Count  Bergest,  from  1721  to  1726,  the  year  of 
her  death.  A  certain  George  von  Bussche,  a  relative  of  the 
President  of  the  Divorce  Court,  held  office  in  her  house- 
hold but  not  as  governor;  also  a  Herr  von  Marlortie, — 
they  were  probably  gentlemen-in-waiting.  Among  her 
ladies-in-waiting  we  have  the  names  of  Madame  von 
Ilten,  Madame  von  Marlortie,  and  Madame  von  Arenswald. 

When  the  Princess  had  settled  down  at  Ahlden  certain 
concessions  were  granted  to  her  to  support  the  theory  of 
her  being  duchess  of  the  place.  She  was  allowed,  through 
an  agent  or  deputy,  the  administration  of  her  property  and 
of  the  Ahlden  territory.  This  extended  for  several  miles, 
and  included  the  towns  of  Retham  and  Walsrode  and  certain 
custom-house  stations  on  the  Weser  and  Aller.  She  was 
also  given  the  nominal  management  of  her  household,  which 
was  fairly  numerous.  It  consisted  of  one  or  two  ladies-in- 
waiting,  one  or  two  gentlemen-in-waiting,  and  two  pages. 
Among  the  domestics  were  two  valets,  fourteen  footmen, 
twelve  female  servants,  three  cooks,  a  confectioner  and 
baker,  and  a  butler.  There  were  also  the  Governor  of  the 
•castle  and  the  escort  of  forty  soldiers,  cavalry  and  infantry. 

As  time  went  on  the  Princess  grew   interested  in   the 


THE  PRISONER  OF  AHLDEN  397 

management  of  her  property  and  household,  and  these 
things  helped  to  pass  many  of  her  weary  hours.  She  also 
took  the  poor  of  the  village  under  her  care,  and  did  what 
she  could  to  help  them,  though  she  was  not  permitted  to 
enter  their  cottages.  She  interested  herself  in  the  village 
schools,  and  the  children  used  to  come  to  her  on  their  fete 
day  and  receive  from  her  hands  prizes  and  little  gifts.  Her 
name  became  a  household  word  round  the  country-side  for 
kindness  and  benevolence,  and  for  works  of  pity  and  mercy. 
As  Duchess  of  Ahlden  she  was  permitted  some  little  state : 
she  held  a  small  levee  on  certain  days,  at  which  the  local 
magnates,  clergy  and  nobility,  with  their  wives,  were  wont 
to  attend  ;  but  visitors  were  limited  strictly  to  people  who 
lived  within  her  territory  of  Ahlden  ;  and  the  Governor  of 
the  castle  and  the  ladies-  and  gentlemen-in-waiting  were 
always  present  at  these  receptions.  She  was  not  permitted 
to  return  these  visits. 

The  Princess  was  scrupulous  in  the  observance  of  re- 
ligious duties  ;  she  restored  the  church  and  enriched  it  by 
various  gifts.  The  parish  minister  acted  as  her  chaplain, 
and  read  prayers  daily  to  the  garrison  and  household  in  the 
large  dining-room  aforesaid.  The  Princess  and  her  ladies 
listened  in  a  room  adjoining,  the  door  being  left  ajar.  Her 
titular  rank  was  always  outwardly  respected,  but  she  was 
subjected  to  any  number  of  petty  and  insulting  restrictions. 
She  was  never  allowed  to  leave  the  castle  at  night  under 
any  circumstances  whatever ;  her  letters  were  supervised, 
and  every  letter  which  came  in  and  went  out  of  the  castle 
was  read.  Despite  this,  she  carried  on  an  active  cor- 
respondence with  her  mother  and  acquaintances,  which 
gradually  increased  in  volume.  Her  great  grievance  during 
these  early  years  at  Ahlden  was  that  she  was  not  permitted 
to  see  her  mother.  The  Duchess  of  Celle  persistently  en- 
deavoured to  break  through  this  rule,  but  the  Hanoverian 
government  made  such  strong  representations  to  the  Duke 
of  Celle  of  the  evils  that  would  follow,  that,  despite  her  tears 
and  entreaties,  she  could  not  gain  permission.  Even  if  the 
Duke  had  wished  to  intervene,  which  may  be  doubted, 
Bernstorff  was  always  on  the  alert  to  counteract  the  in- 
fluence of  the  Duchess.  It  was  known  that  Duke  Antony 
Ulrich  was  in  communication  with  the  Duchess,  and  warmly 
championed  the  cause  of  the  imprisoned  Princess,  and  the 


398    THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

Hanoverian  government  feared,  or  pretended  to  fear,  that  a 
new  intrigue  would  be  set  on  foot  against  them,  and  perhaps 
a  new  attempt  at  flight. 

The  Princess,  therefore,  though  treated  with  every 
outward  semblance  of  respect,  remained  a  prisoner.  At 
first  she  was  not  allowed  outside  the  castle  gates  ;  but  her 
health  suffering  from  the  confinement,  she  was  granted 
another  concession  and  permitted  to  take  her  daily  drives. 
Count  Schulenburg-Klosterrode,  in  his  Herzogin  von  Ahlden 
quotes  the  following  words  taken  from  the  mouth  of  an  old 
woman  of  Ahlden  named  Marie  Ratze,  about  the  year  1800. 
This  old  woman  was  then  ninety-six  years  of  age,  had 
worked  in  the  Princess's  apartments  as  chambermaid,  and 
remembered  her  well.  She  says :  "  The  Princess  was  of 
middle  height  and  rather  stout,  and  during  the  first  years 
of  her  sojourn  at  Ahlden  was  exceedingly  beautiful.  Her 
hair  was  jet  black,  and  the  diamonds,  which  she  never 
forgot  to  put  in  her  hair  when  she  went  out  for  her  airings, 
shone  with  great  brilliancy."  Thus  we  see  how  a  genera- 
tion or  two  spans  the  intervening  centuries. 

Sophie  Dorothea  had  inherited  from  her  mother  the 
Frenchwoman's  love  of  dress,  and  all  through  the  years  of 
her  imprisonment  she  took  pleasure  in  devising  and  wearing 
elaborate  toilettes,  and  in  decking  herself  with  jewels,  though 
there  was  no  one  to  see  them  but  her  little  household  and 
the  few  local  magnates  round  about.  This  would  go  to 
prove  that  her  thoughts  were  not  so  detached  from  the 
world  as  some  of  her  chroniclers  untruly  assert.  On  the 
contrary,  from  the  beginning  of  her  imprisonment  to  the 
day  of  her  death,  she  took  a  keen  interest  in  all  that  was 
going  on  in  the  world  outside,  and  kept  herself  remarkably 
well  informed  of  contemporary  events  not  only  in  Hanover 
and  Celle,  but  in  England  and  the  courts  of  Europe.  Yet 
all  the  while  she  was  politically  dead,  and,  her  father  being 
set  against  her  and  her  mother  powerless,  the  only  way  she 
could  hope  to  recover  her  position  was  through  her  children  ; 
but  her  piteous  appeals  and  oft-repeated  prayers  to  be  allowed 
to  see  them  were  always  refused,  nor  was  she  permitted  to 
carry  on  an  open  correspondence  with  them,  though  later 
she  was  able  to  smuggle  through  communications  secretly. 

When    at    last    the    Princess    realised,   in    her   solitary 
Ahlden,  that  though  granted  an  allowance  and  a  separate 


THE  PRISONER  OF  AHLDEN  399 

•establishment  on  her  father's  territory  as  stipulated,  it  was 
the  intention  of  her  enemies  to  keep  her  a  prisoner,  perhaps 
for  life,  she  saw  too  late  the  trap  into  which  she  had  fallen, 
and  she  continually  petitioned  the  Elector  Ernest  Augustus 
for  her  freedom  ;  nor  did  she  cease  to  struggle  for  liberty 
till  the  day  of  her  death.  In  the  early  part  of  her  captivity 
she  was  pacified  by  being  told  that  she  would  probably  get 
what  she  wanted  by  quietly  submitting  to  the  will  of  the 
Elector  for  a  time,  and  she  was  reminded  that  he  had 
always  been  as  indulgent  towards  her  as  circumstances 
would  allow.  She  acted  on  this  hint  and  submitted  to  the 
very  letter  of  the  law,  however  much  she  rebelled  against 
it  in  spirit.  So  far  did  she  carry  this  submission,  that  one 
night  when  a  fire  broke  out  in 'her  wing  of  the  castle,  which 
she  was  forbidden  to  leave  after  sunset  on  any  pretext 
whatever,  she  was  seen  pacing  up  and  down  the  corridor 
almost  frantic  with  terror,  her  jewel-box  under  her  arm, 
yet  refusing  to  quit  the  wing,  in  spite  of  the  encroaching 
flames,  without  a  signed  order  from  the  Governor.  She 
was  assured  that  her  good  behaviour  would  bring  its  reward. 
Thus  passed  the  first  three  years  of  the  Princess's 
captivity  at  Ahlden — three  years  of  hope  deferred.  Even 
her  mother  counselled  patience,  and  wrote  that  things  were 
working  in  her  favour,  when  suddenly  their  hopes  were 
•dashed  to  the  ground  by  the  death  of  the  Elector  Ernest 
Augustus,  which  took  place  in  January,  1698.  Ernest 
Augustus  had  been  suffering  from  ill-health  for  years,  and 
his  death  was  not  altogether  unexpected.  He  was  an  able 
ruler  and  an  astute  politician,  and  under  his  rule  Hanover 
grew  and  prospered,  and  was  raised  from  the  obscurity  of 
a  dukedom  to  the  dignity  of  an  electorate.  His  failings 
were  a  lack  of  straightforwardness,  a  love  of  display,  and 
allowing  himself  to  be  ruled  by  mistresses,  notably  by  the 
notorious  Countess  Platen.  But  his  court  was  brilliant,  he 
was  good-natured  and  open-handed  to  a  fault,  and  his 
subjects  infinitely  preferred  him  to  the  sullen  and  niggardly 
ruler  who  succeeded.  But  George  Louis,  now  the  Elector 
George,  was  strong  where  his  father  was  weak,  and  from 
the  first  he  made  it  clear  that  he  would  have  no  petticoat 
interference  in  politics.  He  retained  Count  Platen  nomin- 
ally as  his  Prime  Minister,  but  he  took  the  management  of 
affairs  into  his  own  hands.  He  gave  the  Countess  Platen 


4oo   THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

to  understand  that  her  day  was  over,  and  the  ex-mistress 
retired  in  dudgeon  to  Monplaisir,  and  there,  suffering  tor- 
ments from  disease,  she  dragged  out  the  remaining  years 
of  her  infamous  life. 

Another  and  more  illustrious  lady  also  found  her 
position  much  impaired  by  the  Elector's  death.  This  was 
none  other  than  the  Electress  Sophia,  who  during  the  last 
few  years  had  been  steadily  gaining  power  and  influence. 
The  Elector  George  disliked  his  mother,  who  had  opposed 
him  in  the  primogeniture,  and  would  not  suffer  from  her 
the  slightest  interference  in  state  affairs.  He  relegated  her'- 
to  Herrenhausen,  gave  her  a  mean  allowance,  and  even 
neglected  to  pay  her  the  proper  honour  and  respect  to 
which  she  was  entitled  as  his  mother  and  as  Electress- 
Dowager,  and  which  her  age,  rank,  and  high  character 
undoubtedly  demanded.  The  proud  spirit  of  the  old 
Electress  felt  these  slights  keenly,  but  she  was  too  wise  to 
resent  them  openly,  and  she  betook  herself  once  more  to 
the  consolations  of  philosophy  and  to  watching  her  pros- 
pects in  England,  which,  since  the  birth  of  Anne's  son, 
the  little  Duke  of  Gloucester,  had  not  been  of  the  rosiest. 
But  one  consolation  at  least  was  hers — the  daughter  of 
"  the  little  clot  of  dirt  "  would  never  take  precedence  of  her 
as  Electress  at  the  Hanoverian  court,  and  Sophia  determined 
that  nothing  she  could  do  should  be  left  undone  to  keep 
her  daughter-in-law  safely  shut  up  in  Ahlden. 

The  Elector  George,  though  he  differed  from  his  mother 
in  most  things,  was  at  one  with  her  as  to  this.  He  knew 
the  divorce  was  of  doubtful  legality  and  might  any  day  be 
upset  by  a  revision,  so  he  confirmed  it  by  declaring  his 
resolve  to  act  strictly  upon  the  letter  of  the  agreement 
signed  by  his  father  and  the  Duke  of  Celle :  he  would  not 
permit  his  wife  to  assume  the  title  of  Electress,  and  he 
reaffirmed  the  order  that  she  was  always  to  be  styled  the 
Duchess  of  Ahlden.  Thus  her  husband's  accession  to  the 
Electoral  dignity  made  no  difference  to  the  rank  and  posi- 
tion of  Sophie  Dorothea,  but  it  made  a  great  deal  of  dif- 
ference to  her  chances  of  freedom.  The  new  Elector  hated 
his  cast-off  wife  with  sullen  vindictiveness,  whereas  the  old 
Elector  had  only  been  harsh  to  her  from  motives  of  policy, 
and  because  he  was  instigated  by  her  enemies.  The  Elector 
George  determined  from  the  first  to  maintain  the  existing 


SOPHIK  DOROTHEA'S  WING  OF  THE  CASTLE  OF  AHLDEN. 
From  a  photograph  by  the  Author. 


THE  PRISONER  OF  AHLDEN  401 

arrangement — a  very  convenient  one  for  him,  and  he  had 
no  desire  to  see  his  wife  back  again.  He  was  happy  in  the 
society  of  his  Ermengarda  Melusina,  whose  temper  was 
always  equable,  who  meddled  not  in  politics,  and  who  only 
thought  of  enriching  herself.  He  also  found  variety  in  the 
society  of  the  other  mistresses  whom  he  added  from  time 
to  time  to  his  unattractive  harem. 

Four  years  of  captivity  in  the  dreary  loneliness  of 
Ahlden,  had  now  brought  Sophie  Dorothea  to  a  more 
reasonable  frame  of  mind.  She  regretted  bitterly  her  lost 
freedom,  and  she  was  now  as  eager  to  return  to  the  world 
as  she  had  once  been  to  retire  from  it.  So  anxious  was  she 
to  see  her  children,  that  she  was  willing  for  their  sake  to 
humble  herself  to  her  enemies.  She  was  not  always  quite 
consistent.  When  the  tidings  of  the  death  of  Ernest 
Augustus  reached  her,  probably  urged  by  her  mother,  she 
wrote  the  following  letters,  which  are  still  preserved  in  the 
Hanoverian  Archives : — 

"AHLDEN,  January  29,  1698. 

"  To  the  Elector  George  Louis, 

"  MONSIEUR, — I  have  the  honour  to  write  to  Your 
Highness  to  assure  you  that  I  take  a  real  share  in  your 
grief  at  the  death  of  the  Elector  your  father,  and  I  pray 
God  that  He  may  console  you,  that  He  may  bless  your 
reign  with  His  most  precious  favours,  and  that  He  may 
console  Your  Highness  with  every  form  of  prosperity. 
These  are  prayers  that  I  shall  make  every  day  of  my  life 
for  you,  and  I  shall  always  regret  having  displeased  you. 
I  beg  you  to  grant  me  pardon  for  my  past  faults,  as  I  still 
entreat  you  herewith  on  my  knees  with  all  my  heart.  My 
sorrow  for  them  is  so  keen  and  so  bitter  that  I  cannot 
express  it.  The  sincerity  of  my  repentance  should  obtain 
pardon  from  Your  Highness ;  and  if  to  crown  your  favour 
you  would  permit  me  to  see  and  embrace  our  children,  my 
gratitude  for  such  longed-for  favours  would  be  infinite,  as  I 
desire  nothing  so  earnestly  as  this,  and  I  should  be  content 
to  die  afterwards.  I  send  a  thousand  prayers  for  your 
preservation  and  good  health,  and  am, 

"  Submissively  and  respectfully,  Monsieur, 
"  Your  Highness's  most  humble  and  obedient  servant, 

"  SOPHIE  DOROTHEA." 
26 


402   THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

"  AHLDEN,  January  29,  1698. 
"  To  the  Electress-Dowager. 

"  MADAME, — It  is  my  duty  as  well  as  my  pleasure 
to  assure  Your  Highness  that  there  is  no  one  who  takes 
more  share  than  1  do  in  your  grief  at  the  death  of  the 
Elector  your  consort.  I  pray  God  with  all  my  heart, 
Madame,  that  He  will  console  you  and  keep  you  for  many 
years  to  come  in  all  prosperity  and  good  health.  I  beg 
of  you  once  again  to  pardon  me  for  everything  that  I  have 
done  to  incur  your  displeasure  and  to  take  some  interest 
in  me  with  the  Elector  your  son.  I  implore  you  to  grant 
me  the  pardon  that  I  so  earnestly  long  for  and  to  permit 
me  to  embrace  my  children.  And  I  long  also  to  kiss  Your 
Highness's  hands  before  I  die.  If  you  would  grant  me  this 
favour  I  should  be  filled  with  gratitude.  I  beg  you  to  do 
me  the  honour  to  believe  that  nothing  equals  the  infinite 
respect  with  which  I  remain,  Madame, 

"  Your  Highness's  most  humble  and  obedient  servant, 

"  SOPHIE  DOROTHEA." 

No  reply  was  vouchsafed  to  these  piteous  appeals. 
The  sullen  Elector  never  mentioned  his  wife's  name,  and 
the  Electress  Sophia  dismissed  the  prayer  with  angry  scorn. 
Seeing  that  no  hope  was  to  be  expected  from  that  quarter, 
the  Princess  wrote  to  her  mother,  and  besought  her  to 
seize  the  opportunity  afforded  by  the  change  of  government 
to  effect  some  amelioration  of  her  unhappy  lot,  or  at  least 
to  prevent  it  from  becoming  harder.  The  Duchess  of  Celle 
made  strong  representations  to  the  Duke,  and  earnestly 
pleaded  that  their  child  might  no  longer  be  kept  in  im- 
prisonment. But  the  Duke  could  do  nothing  of  himself, 
even  if  he  would,  as  it  would  involve  a  breach  of  the 
agreement  arrived  at  four  years  ago  with  the  Hanoverian 
government ;  yet  he  relented  so  far  as  to  give  his  wife 
permission  to  go  to  see  her  daughter  at  Ahlden,  and  the 
new  Elector,  who  had  his  own  reasons  for  wishing  to  be 
on  good  terms  with  his  uncle,  did  not  venture  to  do  more 
than  protest.  A  good  deal  of  capital  has  been  made  out 
of  the  fact  that  the  Elector  George  gave  the  Duchess  of 
Celle  leave  to  visit  her  daughter,  but  in  reality  his  permis- 
sion was  not  asked  ;  the  Duke  of  Celle  granted  it  on  his 
own  initiative,  and  the  order  was  never  afterwards  revoked. 


THE  PRISONER  OF  AHLDEN  403 

All  the  other  mitigations  of  the  Princess's  lot  were  effected 
before  the  old  Elector's  death.  Backed  by  the  Electress 
Sophia,  the  new  Elector  flatly  refused  to  grant  his  wife 
the  slightest  indulgence. 

We  may  imagine  with  what  joy  the  imprisoned  Prin- 
cess hailed  her  mother's  visits.  After  four  long  years  they 
met  again,  and  were  able  to  exchange  confidences  and 
take  counsel  together.  But  it  was  too  late  to  effect  much. 
The  Duchess  had  lost  all  political  power  and  the  Princess's 
imprisonment  had  now  become  an  accepted  fact ;  nothing 
they  could  say,  and  nothing  they  could  do,  availed  against 
the  vindictive  hatred  of  the  court  of  Hanover. 

Shortly  after  this  concession  Sophie  Dorothea's  heart 
was  rejoiced  by  the  news  of  the  escape  of  her  faithful  friend, 
Eleonore  Knesebeck,  from  the  fortress  of  Schwarzfels,  where 
she  had  been  confined  the  last  four  years.  Knesebeck's 
escape  was  little  short  of  miraculous.  For  a  long  time 
no  one  knew  where  she  was  imprisoned,  and  her  disappear- 
ance seemed  almost  as  mysterious  as  Konigsmarck's  ;  but 
at  last  her  sister  at  Brunswick,  Frau  von  Metsch,  received 
intelligence  that  she  was  a  prisoner  at  Schwarzfels,  and  set 
on  foot  a  plan  for  her  release.  The  poor  Knesebeck  had 
been  made  to  suffer  great  hardships.  She  was  imprisoned 
in  one  small  cell  in  the  tumbledown  fortress,  which  she  was 
never  permitted  to  leave,  given  the  coarsest  food,  and  was 
waited  on  by  one  old  woman.  At  last  the  roof  of  her 
prison  partly  gave  way,  and  a  tiler  was  instructed  to  repair 
it.  This  tiler  turned  out  to  be  a  friend  in  disguise,  and  one 
night  he  let  down  a  rope,  which  Knesebeck  tied  round  her 
waist ;  she  was  then  pulled  up  through  the  hole  in  the  roof 
and  lowered  down  the  prison  walls.  She  had  a  long  drop, 
for  the  rope  was  too  short ;  but  she  managed  to  regain  her 
feet,  and  fled  with  all  speed  to  Wolfenbuttel,  where  she 
received  a  warm  welcome. 

Her  first  steps  were  to  petition  for  the  restitution  of  her 
property  and  bear  testimony  again  to  the  innocence  of  her- 
self and  her  mistress.  The  Hanoverian  government  were 
much  perturbed  by  the  escape  of  their  prisoner,  and  gave 
orders  that  the  Princess  at  Ahlden  was  to  be  watched  more 
strictly  than  ever.  Inquiries  were  made  at  Schwarzfels  to 
discover  how  Knesebeck  had  escaped,  and  her  vacant  cell 
was  carefully  searched.  It  was  found  that  the  unfortunate 

26* 


404   THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

Fraulein  had  passed  her  days  in  writing  with  charcoal  on 
the  whitewashed  walls  of  her  prison,  her  blessings  and 
curses,  complaints  and  consolations.  These  writings  were 
copied  for  the  Hanoverian  Privy  Council  and  form  very 
quaint  reading;  they  are  still  preserved  in  the -Archives 
at  Hanover.  We  have  first  of  all  inventories  of  the  con- 
fiscated property  of  the  imprisoned  lady,  for  which  she 
afterwards  put  in  a  claim,  and  then  a  large  number  of 
utterances  as  to  her  wrongs,  and  seeking  to  know  why  she 
was  imprisoned.  "  I  imagine,"  she  says,  "  it  -is  on  account 
of  the  Princess.  The  Hanoverian  government  must  have 
committed  a  great  wrong,  as  they  want  to  stop  my  mouth  ; 
for  if  they  can  be  responsible  to  the  whole  world  for  what 
they  have  done  to  the  Princess,  may  I  not  speak  too? 
If  she  be  rightly  judged,  how  should  I  dare  to  speak  untruth- 
fully— I,  a  poor,  miserable  girl — against  an  Elector?  If  he 
be  acting  justly,  how  could  I  speak  wrongfully?  Is  he 
not  powerful  enough  to  repress  a  thousand  girls  like  me? 
What  is  the  meaning  of  the  Government  stopping  my 
mouth?  what  are  they  afraid  of  my  saying?  It  is  clear 
from  this  they  must  have  committed  a  great  injustice,  and 
so  they  choke  and  repress  me  with  force  that  their  injustice 
may  not  be  brought  to  light."  She  repeatedly  laid  stress 
on  the  fact  that  four  crimes  were  laid  to  her  charge.  "  I 
am  so  important  in  the  eyes  of"  the  Hanoverian  councillors 
that  they  have  broken  the  Fifth,  Seventh,  Eighth,  and 
Ninth  Commandments  on  my  account :  the  Fifth  in  that 
they  try  to  kill  n~y  body  and  soul  by  cruelty  ;  the  Seventh 
by  kidnapping  me ;  the  Eighth  by  laying  four  false  crimes 
to  my  charge;  and  the  Ninth  by  stealing  my  property." 
But  neither  her  prayers  in  prison,  nor  her  clamourings 
when  out  of  it,  induced  the  Hanoverian  government  to 
make  her  any  restitution,  though  the  Duchess  of  Celle 
helped  her  all  in  her  power,  and  she  found  a  warm 
champion  in  Duke  Antony  Ulrich.  She  lived  for  several 
years  at  Brunswick  and  Wolfcnbuttel,  and  was  later  taken 
into  the  service  of  Sophie  Dorothea's  daughter,  the  Queen 
of  Prussia.  She  never  married,  and  died  as  she  had  lived, 
protesting  her  mistress's  innocence  and  her  own. 


CHAPTER  XXVII. 

THE  FLIGHT  OF  YEARS. 
(1698-1714.) 

The  moving  Finger  writes,  and  having  writ 
Moves  on ;  nor  all  your  Piety  nor  Wit 
Shall  lure  it  back  to  cancel  half  a  line 
Nor  all  your  Tears  wash  out  a  Word  of  it. 

OMAR  KHAYYAM. 

THE  next  few  years  brought  no  further  relief  to  the  prisoner 
of  Ahlden,  though  the  Duchess  of  Celle  was  regular  in  her 
visits  and  did  everything  to  carry  consolation  to  the  captive. 
Sophie  Dorothea  had  frequent  news  of  her  children,  for  they 
were  often  at  Celle,.  and  their  grandmother  Eleonore  did 
not  fail  to  impress  them  with  a  sense  of  their  mother's 
wrongs.  It  seems  their  secret  sympathies  were  with  their 
imprisoned  mother,  whom  they  were  never  permitted  to 
see,  nor  at  Hanover  even  to  mention  her  name.  Duke 
George  William  was  extravagantly  fond  of  his  grandson, 
George  Augustus,  and  often  took  him  with  him  on  his 
hunting  expeditions.  The  old  Duke  gave  the  boy  much 
good  advice,  which  young  George  sometimes  forgot  to 
follow  ;  but  he  always  remembered  his  grandfather  with 
affection  and  respect. 

Many  years  later,  when  he  was  George  II.  of  England, 
babbling  reminiscences  by  the  bedside  of  his  dying  consort 
Caroline,  Lord  Hervey  relates  that  "he  said  that  the  Duke 
of  Zelle  was  fond  of  him,  but  had  often  told  him,  as  well  as 
he  loved  him,  if  he  ever  found  him  guilty  of  a  base  action, 
and  that  he  should  prove  a  liar  or  a  coward,  he  would  shoot 
him  through  the  head  with  his  own  hand  "-1 

George  Augustus  must  have  been  a  lovable  youth,  and 
his  early  portraits  show  him  to  have  been  very  like  his 
mother,  especially  in  his  large,  almond-shaped  eyes.  About 

1 \Lord  Hervey' 's  Memoirs,  vol.  ii. 
405 


406   THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

this  time  he  made  a  determined  effort  to  see  his  mother. 
The  story  goes  that  one  day  when  he  was  hunting  in  the 
woods  near  Luisburg,  he  stole  away  from  the  rest  of  the 
party,  and,  laying  spurs  to  his  horse,  rode  at  full  speed 
in  the  direction  of  Ahlden.  His  suite,  missing  the  Prince 
and  guessing  his  intention,  gave  pursuit,  and  eventually 
caught  him  up  in  a  wood  near  Reitlagen,  some  four  miles 
from  the  castle.  Another  version  says  that  the  Prince 
managed  to  get  as  far  as  Ahlden,  and  actually  beheld  his 
mother,  who  waved  to  him  from  the  window.  The  Governor 
of  the  castle  refused  him  admission,  and  he  then  sought  to 
gain  an  entrance  by  swimming  across  the  Aller.  In  either 
case  his  suite  followed  him,  and,  on  his  refusing  to  return, 
conducted  the  Prince  back  to  Hanover  under  compulsion. 

His  escapade  was  visited  by  the  Elector's  heavy  dis- 
pleasure, and  the  young  George's  partisanship  of  his  mother 
was  probably  the  beginning  of  bad  blood  between  father 
and  son,  for  they  were  frequently  quarrelling,  and  came  to 
hate  one  another  with  an  intense  hatred.  '* //  estfougueux, 
mats  il  a  du  coeur"  said  the  Elector  George  once  of  his  son, 
and  certainly  his  effort  to  see  his  mether  would  seem  to 
bear  out  his  father's  estimate  of  his  character. 

In  April,  1 700,  events  took  a  turn,  which,  under  favourable 
circumstances,  might  have  resulted  in  the  Princess's  liberty, 
and  actually  gained  her  the  one  respite  in  her  thirty-two 
years'  captivity.  The  invasion  of  the  Principality  of  Celle 
by  French  and  Polish  troops  under  the  command  of  the 
Danish  Count  Ahlefield  and  their  nearness  to  Ahlden,  gave 
the  Duchess  of  Celle  the  opportunity  she  was  longing  for, 
and  she  implored  her  husband  to  bring  the  Princess  to  Celle, 
where  she  would  be  out  of  danger.  It  was  a  pretext  merely, 
for  there  was  no  real  danger,  and  even  if  there  had  been, 
Sophie  Dorothea  would  doubtless  have  been  glad  if  the 
invaders  had  broken  into  her  prison  house  and  taken  her  a 
captive  of  war.  It  would  at  least  have  varied  the  monotony 
of  her  existence,  and  the  change  might  have  been  for  the 
better  ;  it  could  hardly  have  been  for  the  worse. 

Despite  difficulties  raised  by  Bernstorff  and  the  Elector 
George,  George  William  was  prevailed  upon  to  grant  his 
wife's  prayer ;  but  he  had  to  stipulate  that  his  daughter 
should  be  confined  to  one  wing  of  the  castle  of  Celle,  and 
he  refused  to  see  her.  So  one  April  day  the  gates  of  Ahlden 


THE  FLIGHT  OF  YEARS  407 

were  thrown  open,  and  the  Princess  was  escorted  over  the 
moorland  to  Celle.  Every  care  was  taken  to  prevent  a 
popular  demonstration.  She  arrived  in  the  dead  of  the  night, 
and  was  conducted  at  once  to  her  apartments  in  the  old 
part  of  the  schloss,  which  she  had  occupied  as  a  child  and 
during  her  unhappy  married  life  on  her  visits  to  her  parents. 
Here  the  Princess  remained  for  nearly  a  year,  a  prisoner  in 
her  father's  house,  studiously  avoiding  any  breach  of  the 
rules  laid  down,  and  seeking  by  good  behaviour  to  soften  the 
hearts  of  her  jailers.  The  possibility  of  any  danger  from 
the  French  soon  passed  away.  Still  the  Princess  lingered 
at  Celle,  and  though  orders  came  from  Hanover  that  she 
was  to  be  sent  back  to  Ahlden  they  were  not  obeyed.  The 
Duchess  intervened,  and  sometimes  on  the  plea  of  ill-health 
and  sometimes  on  other  pretexts  she  kept  her  daughter  with 
her. 

At  last,  however,  the  pressure  from  Hanover  was  so 
strong  that  the  Princess  was  forced  to  leave  Celle  without 
having  spoken  to  her  father,  though  she  had  been  nearly 
a  year  under  his  roof.  She  returned  to  Ahlden,  and  her  one 
golden  chance  of  liberty  was  gone  for  ever.  The  good  folk  of 
Celle  were  loud  in  favour  of  their  beloved  Princess,  and  got 
up  noisy  demonstrations  ;  but  all  to  no  purpose.  Nothing 
availed  against  the  pitiless  hatred  of  the  Elector  George 
and  the  Electress  Sophia. 

The  following  extracts  from  letters  written  by  the 
Duchess  of  Orleans  to  the  Electress  Sophia  bear  upon  this 
incident : — 

July  29,  1700. — "The  Duchess  of  Celle  has  lost  no  time 
in  having  her  daughter  brought  to  Celle.  I  should  think 
that  her  father  must  be  very  much  embarrassed  about  the 
matter,  for  it  will  grieve  him  to  send  his  daughter  away 
again  without  seeing  her,  and  yet  the  honour  of  the  House 
does  not  permit  him  to  let  her  remain  at  Celle,  and  there 
is  the  fear  that  the  Elector  would  take  it  ill." 

August  8,  1700. — "  I  should  like  to  know  if  the  Elector 
will  allow  the  Duchess  of  Ahlden  to  remain  at  Celle  or  if 
he  will  send  her  back  to  Ahlden  again.  I  hear  that  the 
Princess  leads  a  very  solitary  life,  but  all  the  same  she  is 
splendidly  dressed,  and  when  she  takes  a  walk  on  the 


4o8    THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

ramparts  at  Celle  she  always  covers  her  face  with  a  veil.  I 
fancy  she  hopes  to  touch  the  heart  of  her  husband  by  her 
decorous  life,  so  that  he  may  take  her  as  his  wife  again." 

August  26,  1700. — "  I  hear  that  the  Duchess  of  Celle 
has  received  orders  to  send  her  daughter  back  to  Ahlden, 
but  they  have  not  been  carried  out.  The  people  of  Celle 
are  not  to  be  blamed  for  lamenting  on  account  of  their 
Princess,  but  her  father  deserves  praise  for  exhibiting  such 
firmness." 

While  the  Princess  was  at  Celle  an  event  occurred  in 
England  pregnant  with  consequences  to  the  future  of  the 
House  of  Hanover,  and  it  might  perhaps  have  contributed 
indirectly  to  the  Elector's  determination  to  send  his  wife 
back  to  Ahlden.  The  heir-presumptive  to  the  throne  of 
England,  Anne's  sickly  little  son,  the  Duke  of  Gloucester, 
died  in  July,  1700.  Henceforth,  for  practical  politics,  the 
succession  lay  between  the  direct  line  of  the  exiled  and 
Roman  Catholic  House  of  Stuart,  and  the  remote  line  of 
the  Protestant  House  of  Hanover.1  The  Hanoverian  suc- 
cession was  viewed  with  little  favour  in  England,  at  best  it 
was  a  last  resort;  but  the  failing  health  of  King  William, 
the  impossibility  of  Anne  having  any  more  children,  and 
the  determination  not  to  restore  a  Roman  Catholic  to  the 
throne,  made  it  imperative  that,  the  nation  should  do  some- 
thing to  settle  the  succession.  In  the  autumn  of  1700  the 
Electress  Sophia,  accompanied  by  her  daughter  the  Elec- 
tress  of  Brandenburg,  paid  a  visit  to  King  William  at  Loo. 
The  ostensible  reason  of  the  Electress's  visit  was  to  gain 
his  aid  in  elevating  the  electorate  of  Brandenburg  to  the 
kingdom  of  Prussia  (which  took  place  a  little  later);  but  of 
course  English  people  saw  in  it  a  move  in  the  direction  of 
Sophia's  succession  to  the  throne  of  England.  The  Elec- 
tress seems  to  have  felt,  as  every  one  felt  then,  that  events 
were  working  in  favour  of  the  royal  exiles  at  St.  Germains  ; 

JThe  next  in  blood,  after  the  children  of  James  II.,  was  the  Duchess  of 
Savoy,  daughter  of  Henrietta,  Duchess  of  Orleans  (a  daughter  of  Charles  I.), 
and  then  the  family  of  Elizabeth,  Queen  of  Bohemia  (daughter  of  James  I.)  ; 
but  all  these,  save  the  Electress  Sophia,  were  Roman  Catholics.  It  is  in- 
teresting to  note  that  the  lineal  descendant  of  Charles  I.,  through  the  Duchess 
of  Savoy,  is  Mary,  Consort  of  Prince  Ludwig  of  Bavaria,  eldest  son  of  the 
Prince  Regent  and  heir-presumptive  to  the  throne  of  Bavaria. 


THE  FLIGHT  OF  YEARS  409 

but  King  William,  who  hated  Anne  more  than  all  the  exiled 
House  of  Stuart  put  together,  urged  the  Electress  Sophia 
to  assert  herself  in  some  way  in  opposition  to  the  Princess 
Anne.  The  wily  old  lady  discreetly  declined,  and  even 
suggested  that  the  King  should  come  to  terms  with  the 
expatriated  Prince  of  Wales.  She  would  not  stand  in  her 
own  light,  but  short  of  that  she  was  a  Jacobite.  Her  sugges- 
tion had  the  effect  of  enraging  William.  He  turned  his 
back  on  her  and  left  for  England  the  next  day.  So  the 
Electress  had  to  return  crestfallen  to  Hanover. 

Nevertheless  William,  on  thinking  the  matter  over,  acted 
upon  Sophia's  hint,  and,  inspired  by  his  hatred  of  Anne, 
made  a  formal  offer  to  King  James  to  adopt  the  young 
Prince  of  Wales,  bring  him  over  to  England,  and  make 
him  his  successor.  This  policy  was  only  possible  if  the 
Prince  would  change  his  religion  ;  but  even  if  he  had  been 
willing  to  do  so,  which  he  was  not,  it  had  no  chance.  The 
offer  was  rejected  with  scorn'  by  King  James.  He  would 
make  no  terms  with  the  usurper.  Stung  by  this  contemptu- 
ous rejection,  William  once  more  took  up  the  wild  idea  of 
making  the  Electress  Sophia  his  successor  to  the  exclusion 
of  his  detested  sister-in-law  Anne  ;  but  the  old  Electress 
knew  that  she  had  no  chance  against  Anne,  and  was  far  too 
astute  to  listen  to  any  such  proposal.  If  it  were  only  a 
question  of  Anne  s  life,  Sophia,  or  her  son,  would  not  have 
long  to  wait,  for  Anne's  health  was  notoriously  bad,  and 
her  life  was  worth  little  more  than  William's.  Foiled  in 
this  direction,  the  King  had  no  alternative  but  to  push  on 
the  Act  of  Parliament  which  settled  the  succession  of  the 
crown  of  England  on  the  Electress  Sophia  and  the  heirs  of 
her  body,  being  Protestants,  after  the  death  of  himself  and 
of  Anne  without  heirs.  This  Act,  known  as  the  Bill  of 
Succession,  was  passed  by  both  Houses  without  much  op- 
position, and  became  law  in  the  summer  of  1701. 

As  William  was  desirous  of  gaining  the  support  of  the 
Elector  George  Louis  to  a  grand  alliance  he  was  then  medi- 
tating, he  made  the  passing  of  the  Act  an  occasion  to  pay 
special  honour  to  the  Electoral  House.  He  despatched 
Lord  Macclesfield  to  Hanover  charged  with  the  mission  of 
delivering  a  copy  of  the  Act  to  the  Electress  Sophia,  and 
of  investing  her  son  with  the  Order  of  the  Garter.  The 
selection  of  Lord  Macclesfield  was  doubtless  due  to  the  fact 


4io   THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

that  he  was  "  some  sort  of  a  relation  "  of  the  Electress 
Sophia's  mother,  Elizabeth,  daughter  of  James  I.,  through 
whom  the  succession  came  to  the  House  of  Hanover.  His 
mission  was  a  curious  compromise  between  the  official  and 
unofficial.  He  was  not  given  any  appellation  as  plenipo- 
tentiary or  envoy,  yet  he  took  with  him  a  numerous  and 
splendid  suite,  including  the  Irish  traveller,  Toland,  to  whose 
lively  pen  we  are  indebted  for  an  account  of  this  mission. 

Whatever  indifference  the  Electress  Sophia  and  her  son 
may  have  feigned  towards  the  splendid  prospects  opening 
out  before  them,  it  vanished  when  the  news  came  that  Lord 
Macclesfield  had  actually  set  out  from  England.  He  was 
met  on  the  frontier  of  the  electorate  by  the  ministers  and 
chief  officials  of  the  electoral  court,  and  escorted  with  great 
pomp  to  Hanover,  where  a  reception  of  unparalleled  magni- 
ficence was  accorded  to  him.  He  and  every  member  of  his 
suite,  down  to  the  very  valets,  were  treated  with  profuse 
liberality,  and  lodged  and  entertained  in  the  most  sumptu- 
ous manner.  Had  Macclesfield  been  William  himself  he 
could  not  have  been  entertained  more  royally.  A  banquet 
was  held  over-night,  and  the  next  day,  the  proudest  day  of 
the  Electress  Sophia's  life,  Lord  Macclesfield  formally  pre- 
sented her  with  the  Act  of  Succession  and  invested  her 
son  with  the  insignia  of  the  Garter.  The  Electress  Sophia 
gave  him  her  portrait,  surmounted  by  the  electoral  crown 
in  diamonds,  and  the  Elector  George  gave  him  a  gold  basin 
and  ewer.  The  chaplain  of  the  mission,  Dr.  Sandys,  pre- 
sented many  prayer-books  to  the  Electress,  which  she  did 
not  use,  and  she  rewarded  him  with  many  books  in  return 
and  a  gold  snuff-box.  All  the  suite  were  likewise  given 
souvenirs,  and  they  returned  to  England  with  wonderful 
tales  of  the  liberality  of  the  Hanoverian  court,  which  they 
represented  as  a  land  flowing  with  milk  and  honey. 

Toland,  writing  later  to  the  English  minister  in  Holland, 
gave  a  long  description  of  the  Electress  Sophia  and  other 
personages  at  Hanover,  but  of  poor  Sophie  Dorothea,  who 
had  now  gone  back  to  her  dreary  captivity  at  Ahlden,  he 
has  not  a  word  to  say,  though  he  must  have  known  of  her 
existence ;  nor  had  she,  "  the  genuine  wife,"  as  Horace 
Walpole  calls  her,  any  share  in  her  husband's  new  and 
growing  honours. 

Soon  after  the  delivery  of  the  Act  of  Succession  old 


THE  FLIGHT  OF  YEARS  411 

King  James  died  at  St.  Germains,  and  his  son  declared 
himself  determined  to  walk  in  his  father's  faith,  which  was 
all  in  favour  of  the  Hanoverian  succession  and  the  Electress 
Sophia.  England  and  English  •  affairs  now  absorbed  her 
wholly,  and  she  had  neither  time  no'r  inclination  to  think 
about  Sophie  Dorothea.  The  Duchess  of  Celle  kept  up  an 
agitation  in  her  daughter's  favour,  but  the  Electoral  court 
was  inflated  with  its  English  prospects  and  took  no  heed. 
Nothing  was  gained  that  affected  the  principle  of  the  agree- 
ment arranged  before  the  divorce.  We  find  the  Duchess 
of  Orleans  writing  to  her  aunt : — 

December  24,  1702. — "As  the  Duchess  of  Ahlden  often 
sees  her  mother  and  other  ladies,  and  can  also  go  for  drives, 
she  is  not  so  much  to  be  pitied." 

And  this  was  doubtless  the  view  of  the  Electress  Sophia, 
who  would  have  kept  her  even  a  closer  prisoner  if  she  could. 

The  death  of  William  III.  and  the  accession  of  Anne 
to  the  throne  of  England  brought  the  Electress  Sophia  one 
step  nearer  to  her  coveted  goal,  and  she  became  "  the  heiress 
of  Great  Britain,"  as  she  loved  to  describe  herself.  But 
Anne  had  no  love  for  her  "  heiress  "  and  kept  her  at  arm's 
length.  The  Duchess  of  Celle,  who  had  heard  of  Anne's 
dislike  of  her  Hanoverian  relatives  and  of  her  kindness  of 
heart,  seized  the  opportunity  to  place  the  sad  case  of  her 
daughter  before  the  powerful  Queen  of  England.  She 
wrote  beseeching  her  to  use  her  influence  on  behalf  of  the 
imprisoned  Princess.1  After  some  time  an  answer  came — 
what  it  was  history  sayeth  not.  It  is  probable  that  Queen 
Anne  did  not  send  an  absolute  refusal,  but  promised  to  give 
the  matter  her  consideration.  This  promise,  it  would  seem, 
she  kept,  and  she  did  what  she  could,  for  we  find  the  Duchess 
of  Orleans  writing  two  years  afterwards  to  the  Electress 
Sophia  :— 

November  30,  1704. — "They  say  in  Paris  Lord  Marl- 
borough  intends  to  travel  to  Hanover  and  do  his  best  to 

JThe  letter  dated  September  20,  1702,  is  said  to  be  in  the  State  Paper 
Office,  but  I  cannot  find  it,  though  mention  is  made  by  Cresset  of  a  letter 
from  the  Duchess  of  Celle  to  Queen  Anne,  and  he  writes  to  the  Foreign 
Minister  at  home  for  an  answer. 


412   THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

bring  about  a  reconciliation  between  the  Duchess  of  Ahlden 
and  the  Elector,  and  he  proposes  to  offer  his  daughter  in 
marriage  to  the  Prince  [George  Augustus]." 

If  Marlborough  really  undertook  this  delicate  mission, 
it  had  little  or  no  effect.  The  Princess  would  not  have 
bought  her  liberty  at  the  price  of  cohabiting  again  with 
her  husband,  and  it  may  be  doubted  if  the  Elector  would 
have  had  her  back  on  any  terms.  With  two  natures  so 
stubborn  even  the  diplomacy  of  Marlborough  could  have 
effected  nothing. 

The  following  year,  1705,  the  Princess's  chances  of 
liberty  received  what  must  be  considered  their  final  blow 
by  the  death  of  her  father.  Of  late  years  the  old  Duke  had 
manifested  considerable  interest  in  his  daughter,  and  had 
talked  of  going  to  see  her  ;  but  Bernstorff  had  thrown  such 
obstacles  in  the  way,  and  had  drawn  such  a  picture  of  the 
Electoral  displeasure  and  the  difficulties  which  this  meeting 
would  surely  create  with  Hanover,  that  the  ease-loving 
Duke  gave  way  and  postponed  his  visit.  But  he  returned 
to  the  subject  ever  and  anon,  and  that  his  heart  had 
softened  towards  his  only  child  is  manifest  from  a  codicil 
which  he  added  to  his  will  dated  January  26,  1705,  which 
materially  benefited  the  Princess,  and  made  her  the  residu- 
ary legatee  of  his  large  fortune.  The  same  day  the  Duchess 
of  Celle  also  made  a  will,  with  the  approval  of  her  husband, 
which  provided  that  the  "  Duchess  of  Ahlden  "  should  in- 
herit at  her  death  a  sum  of  sixty  thousand  thalers  deposited 
in  the  banks  of  the  Hague  and  Amsterdam,  also  the  estate 
of  Olbreuse  in  Poitou,  the  mansion  of  Wienhausen,  and  all 
her  jewellery,  furniture,  and  plate.  She  also  left  her  an 
income  of  three  thousand  thalers  a  year  from  another  estate. 

The  combined  effect  of  these  wills  was  to  make  the 
prisoner  of  Ahlden  one  of  the  richest  heiresses  in  Europe. 
Both  her  father  and  her  mother  must  have  had  in  mind 
her  eventual  liberty,  as  it  would  have  been  a  mere  mockery 
to  have  left  her  this  wealth  and  have  kept  her  shut  up  in 
Ahlden,  where  she  could  not  spend  it,  and  where  her  in- 
come was  already  in  excess  of  her  needs.  The  old  Duke 
at  last  seemed  determined  to  do  what  he  could  to  repair 
the  injustice  done  to  his  daughter,  and  when  the  wills  were 
signed  he  announced  his  determination  of  going  to  see  her. 


THE  FLIGHT  OF  YEARS  413 

He  was  now  in  his  seventieth  year  and  his  strength  was 
fast  failing ;  he  wished  to  be  reconciled  to  his  only  child 
before  he  died.  This  natural  and  laudable  desire  Bernstorff 
opposed  as  long  as  he  dared,  but  seeing  the  Duke's  mind 
was  made  up,  he  changed  his  tactics  and  merely  advised 
him  to  postpone  his  visit  until  after  a  shooting  expedition 
on  which  he  was  bent.  The  delay,  as  the  minister  hoped, 
proved  fatal ;  the  Duke  caught  a  chill,  which  he  tried  to 
remedy  by  taking  the  waters  of  Wienhausen,  and  he  followed 
this  drastic  cure  even  after  he  had  taken  to  his  bed.  Poley, 
who  had  now  succeeded  Cresset  as  English  envoy,  writes : — 

"That  which  contributed  to  his  distemper  was  the  tak- 
ing the  waters  in  bed,  and,  being  in  a  sweat,  he  was  so 
impatient  as  to  rise  in  his  shirt  and  open  the  windows,  by 
which  he  got  a  great  cold,  which  threw  him  into  the  colik 
and  took  away  his  stomach.  ...  I  forgot  to  mention  ye 
worse  symptoms  which  attended  ye  Duke  of  Zelle's  dis- 
temper in  the  beginning  was  a  hyccop,  which  continues, 
and  he  vomits  all  he  takes."  * 

The  "hyccop"  proved  fatal.  The  Duke  died  ten  days 
later,  and  was  universally  mourned  by  his  subjects.  He 
was  of  a  singularly  upright  and  straightforward  character, 
always  a  true  friend,  generous  and  kind-hearted  ;  but  he 
was  irresolute  and  easily  swayed,  and  possessed  that  vein 
of  obstinacy  often  found  in  weak  characters.  On  this 
weakness  the  wily  Bernstorff  played  to  the  great  benefit  of 
Hanover  and  to  the  detriment  of  the  Duchess  of  Celle  and 
her  daughter.  Bernstorff  was  now  rewarded  for  his  breach 
of  trust  by  being  raised  to  the  rank  of  Count,  and  a  little 
later  he  succeeded  old  Platen  as  confidential  minister  to 
the  Elector  of  Hanover. 

The  death  of  the  Duke  of  Celle  left  his  widow  and 
daughter  at  the  mercy  of  their  implacable  foe  the  Elector. 
The  Duchess  Eleonore  could  expect  no  consideration,  and 
her  daughter  no  justice,  from  their  enemies  at  Hanover. 
With  indecent  haste  the  widow  was  ordered  to  quit  the 
Castle  of  Celle  and  withdraw  to  Wienhausen,  which  had 
been  provided  for  her  under  her  husband's  will.  The 

1  Poley's  Despatch,  Hanover,  August  18,  1705. 


THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

whole  of  the  territory  of  Celle  now  became  merged  with 
that  of  Hanover  under  the  Elector  George,  whose  power 
and  dignity  were  greatly  enhanced  thereby ;  but  the 
"genuine  wife,"  through  whom  all  this  wealth  came,  was 
still  kept  a  prisoner  at  Ahlden,  and  to  her  prayers  and 
entreaties  for  freedom  her  husband  turned  a  deaf  ear.  All 
Sophie  Dorothea  now  asked  was  that  she  might  be  allowed 
to  go  to  live  somewhere  quietly  with  her  widowed  mother, 
and  permission  afforded  her  to  see  her  children.  Both 
requests  were  refused.  It  has  been  stated  that  George 
greatly  increased  the  rigours  of  the  Princess's  imprison- 
ment after  her  father's  death  ;  there  exists  no  proof  of  this, 
but  he  may  have  cut  her  off  from  attending  public  worship 
in  the  parish  church  and  have  limited  her  drives.  Her 
mother  was  still  allowed  to  visit  her  and  did  so  until  her 
death,  but  no  new  concessions,  not  even  the  most  trifling, 
were  accorded.  The  Elector  took  his  stand  on  the  agree- 
ment arrived  at  before  the  divorce  between  his  father  and 
his  uncle,  and  it  was  rigidly  maintained.  The  Princess 
might  as  well  have  pleaded  to  a  stone. 

The  same  year  that  witnessed  the  death  of  Duke 
George  William  saw  also  the  decease  of  two  of  the  enemies 
of  Sophie  Dorothea.  Sophia  Charlotte,  Queen  of  Prussia, 
better  known  in  this  book  as  the  Electress  of  Brandenburg, 
expired  suddenly  when  on  a  visit  to  Hanover.  Some  say 
she  passed  away  with  an  epigram  on  her  lips,  and  others 
that  she  departed  in  the  true  faith  of  a  Christian.  With 
such  a  conflict  of  testimony,  who  shall  say  ?  She  had  been 
brought  up  "  of  no  religion  as  yet,"  and  she  probably  died 
in  the  same  frame  of  mind.  Her  aged  mother  mourned 
her  greatly. 

A  month  later  the  Countess  Platen  died.  Her  last 
years  had  been  rendered  a  torment  by  a  disease  which 
made  her  hideous  to  behold  and  deprived  her  of  sight. 
But,  blind  though  she  was,  she  nevertheless,  as  Thackeray 
says,  "  constantly  saw  Konigsmarck's  ghost  by  her  wicked 
old  bed  ".  She  suffered  torments  of  remorse  for  her  share 
in  his  death,  and  it  is  said  that  she  made  a  confession  on 
her  deathbed  of  the  part  she  had  played  in  his  murder.  A 
document  purporting  to  come  from  her  confessor  has  been 
published,  but  there  is  no  proof  of  its  genuineness. 

The  bells  at  Hanover  had  scarcely  ceased  tolling  for 


THE  FLIGHT  OF  YEARS  415 

the  Duke  of  Celle's  death,  than  they  rang  out  a  merry 
peal  for  the  marriage  of  Sophie  Dorothea's  son,  George 
Augustus,  to  Caroline  of  Ansbach,  afterwards  the  illustrious 
Queen  Caroline  of  England.  The  young  Princess  had 
been  brought  up  at  the  court  of  Berlin  under  the  wing  of 
the  Electress  of  Brandenburg,  first  Queen  of  Prussia.  She 
was  beautiful,  witty,  and  clever,  and  early  sided  with  her 
husband  against  his  father ;  but  there  is  nothing  to  show 
that  she  took  the  part  of  his  persecuted  mother.  The 
marriage  of  her  son  affected  in  no  way  the  fortunes  of 
Sophie  Dorothea,  nor  was  the  event  officially  communicated 
to  her.  But  the  English  envoy  Poley  writes  :  "  During  the 
Duke  of  Zell's  being  here  [Hanover]  the  Duchess  of  Zell 
goes  to  stay  with  her  daughter,  and  probably  to  acquaint 
her  with  her  son's  marriage  ",l 

About  this  time  Poley  was  recalled  to  England,  and  he 
sent  home  an  interesting  document,2  in  which  he  gives  a 
detailed  account  of  the  Electoral  family  of  Hanover.  It 
is,  of  course,  written  with  a  courtly  pen,  with  a  view  to  pos- 
sible eventualities,  and  the  description  which  he  gives  of 
the  Electress  Sophia  and  the  Elector  is  more  moderately 
worded  than  that  of  Toland.  Unlike  Toland,  he  could 
not  ignore  the  existence  of  the  prisoner  of  Ahlden,  and  this 
is  how  he  mentions  her  : — 

"  The  Elector  was  formerly  married  to  a  daughter  of 
the  Duke  of  Zell,  by  whom  he  had  one  son  and  one 
daughter,  but  was  afterwards  separated  from  her ;  since 
which  time  she  hath  lived  at  Ahlden,  of  which  she  bears 
the  title,  in  the  country  of  Zell.  She  hath  a  revenue  ap- 
propriated to  her,  and  of  which  is  in  possession,  and,  as 
some  have  imagined,  may  perhaps  goe  live  with  her  mother 
at  the  town  of  Liineburg,  whither  it  is  said  that  the 
Duchess-Dowager  of  Zell  intends  to  retire." 

The  case  could  hardly  be  more  diplomatically  worded  ; 
the  facts  are  correct,  yet  the  inference  they  convey  is 
wholly  false.  One  would  gather  from  this  effusion  that 

1  Poley's  Despatch,  Hanover,  July  21,  1705. 

2  Still  preserved  in  the  State  Paper  Office.     "  Called  Mr.  Poley's  account 
of  the  House  of  Brunswick,  etc.,  upon  his  return  from  being  Her  Majesty's 
envoy  at  Hanover,  November  9,  1705." 


416   THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

Sophie  Dorothea  was  living  in  dignified  and  voluntary 
retirement  instead  of  being  a  prisoner  in  two  small  rooms, 
closely  guarded,  and  watched  over  by  jailers  and  spies. 
The  following  account  of  her  children  from  the  same 
despatch  is  also  of  interest  :— 

"The  Prince  Electoral  was  born  in  the  year  1683,  and  is 
of  middle  stature,  but  seems  of  constitution  less  vigorous 
than  his  father.  He  hath  much  witt  and  good  humour  in 
his  conversation,  and  hath  all  the  inclinations  suitable  to  his 
quality.  He  was  lately  married  to  a  Princess  of  the  House 
of  Brandenburg-Anspach  of  the  same  age  with  himself,  and 
of  so  many  good  qualities  and  endowments  as  may  promise 
much  happiness  to  the  Family. 

"  The  Princess  of  Hanover,  daughter  of  the  Elector,  is 
of  about  eighteen  years  of  age,  and  something  about  middle 
stature  and  well  shaped.  She  hath  much  beauty  and  is  of 
agreeable  conversation.  Her  marriage  hath  been  talked  of 
with  the  King  of  Sweden,  but  I  doe  not  know  that  it  was 
ever  proposed.  The  Prince  Royall  of  Prussia,  her  couzen 
germane,  is  thought  to  have  more  inclination  for  her  than 
for  anybody  else,  but  it  hath  been  doubted  if  the  King  of 
Prussia  would  be  willing  to  consent  to  that  marriage." 

Poley's  surmise  that  the  Crown  Prince  Frederick 
William  of  Prussia  was  in  love  with  his  cousin,  the  young 
Sophie  Dorothea,  proved  to  be  correct,  for  though  he  had  a 
"  choice  of  three  "  he  loved  her  above  all  others,  and  over- 
came his  father's  dislike  to  the  match.  They  were  married 
in  November,  1706,  with  much  ceremony,  at  Hanover,  and 
soon  after  set  out  for  Berlin.  The  lonely  mother  at  Ahlden 
heard  of  her  daughter's  brilliant  marriage  in  the  same  way 
as  she  had  heard  of  her  son's,  through  her  mother  ;  but  she 
was  not  allowed  to  communicate  with  her,  nor  was  the 
Duchess-Dowager  of  Celle  present  at  either  of  the  weddings. 
To  the  Electoral  family  Eleonore  had  once  more  become 
"the  d'Olbreuse,"  and  was  treated  accordingly.  Her  age, 
her  grey  hairs,  her  bereavements,  her  powerlessness  to  do 
harm,  made  no  difference  to  the  contempt  and  hatred  with 
which  the  Electress  Sophia  and  her  son  pursued  her.  Her 
grandchildren,  however,  took  her  part,  and,  though  they  were 
powerless  to  help  their  mother,  they  protected  their  grand- 


THE  FLIGHT  OF  YEARS  417 

mother  from  open  insult.  The  young  Crown  Princess  of 
Prussia  was  now  far  away  from  her  mother  and  the  centre 
of  a  brilliant  court,  yet  the  lonely  captive  at  Ahlden 
contrived  to  enter  into  some  sort  of  correspondence  with 
her. 

There  was  now  a  strong  disposition  on  the  part  of 
the  Hanoverian  court  to  hush  up  all  mention  of  Sophie 
Dorothea.  The  time  was  certainly  favourable :  her  father 
was  dead,  her  mother  powerless,  her  children  married  ;  she 
was  without  a  friend  on  earth.  Why  should  she  not  be 
quietly  buried  in  her  living  tomb  ?  But  family  skeletons 
are  notoriously  hard  things  to  hide  ;  they  have  a  habit  of 
popping  out  at  inconvenient  seasons,  and  Sophie  Dorothea 
was  not  a  woman  to  be  easily  suppressed.  She  had  come 
to  see  that  there  was  nothing  to  be  gained  by  submission, 
and  henceforth  she  assumed  more  aggressive  tactics,  filling 
the  air  with  her  cries,  and  beating  her  wings  against  the 
bars  of  her  cage  in  vain  endeavour  for  freedom.  Poor 
woman  !  it  was  vain  to  cry,  and  she  only  bruised  her  bosom 
with  her  struggles ;  but  one  thing  she  achieved, — she  saved 
herself  from  being  forgotten  by  the  outside  world.  Her 
mother's  old  friend,  Duke  Antony  Ulrich,  was  especially 
indignant  at  the  way  she  was  treated  after  her  father's 
death  and  at  the  Elector's  refusal  to  allow  her  to  go  and 
live  quietly  with  her  mother.  Animated  by  hatred  of  the 
House  of  Hanover,  quite  as  much  as  by  sympathy  for 
Sophie  Dorothea,  he  resolved  to  give  the  world  the  story 
of  her  wrongs.  He  was  powerless  to  help  her  in  any  other 
way,  but  for  this  task  he  was  peculiarly  fitted.  Unlike 
most  princes  of  his  age,  he  dabbled  in  literature  and  was  a 
voluminous  and  ready  writer,  the  author  of  prose  romances, 
poems,  and  plays.  He  determined  to  turn  his  gifts  to  ac- 
count by  elaborating  the  story  of  his  much-wronged  cousin, 
which,  indeed,  would  furnish  material  for  any  romance. 
He  had  been  working  for  some  time  at  the  Roman  Octavia, 
a  series  of  episodes  nominally  taken  from  the  Roman  em- 
perors, into  which  he  had  incorporated  many  scenes  and 
events  of  his  own  life  and  times  disguised  by  ancient 
names.  He  now  devoted  the  sixth,  or  supplementary, 
volume  to  the  history  of  Sophie  Dorothea.  No  doubt  he 
was  aided  in  this  by  Eleonore  von  Knesebeck,  who  was 
then  living  at  Wolfenbuttel. 

27 


4i 8   THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

The  narrative  so  closely  resembled  what  had  actually 
happened,  that  every  one  could  penetrate  through  the  thinly 
veiled  disguise  of  fictitious  names  and  learn  the  story  of 
the  injured  Princess.  It  was  told  in  the  form  of  dramatic 
dialogue,  with  due  regard  to  stage  effect.  Duke. George 
William  appears  as  King  Polemon  of  Cappadocia ;  his 
Duchess  is  Dinames,  a  Spanish  Princess  ;  Ernest  Augustus 
is  Mythridates,  King  of  Pontus.  The  Electress  Sophia, 
whom  Antony  Ulrich  especially  hated,  is  satirised  under 
the  name  of  Adonacris,  "  who,  as  the  sister  of  the  great 
Indian  king,  gave  herself  the  airs  of  one  of  the  mightiest 
princesses  in  the  world  ".  George  Louis  figures  as  Prince 
Cotys,  a  dull  and  brutal  youth  ;  while  Sophie  Dorothea 
appears  as  the  Princess  Solane,  who  for  beauty  and  riches 
had  no  rival  in  Asia.  Konigsmarck  figures  as  ^Equilius, 
one  of  the  Roman  lords  at  the  court  of  the  incomparable 
Queen  Adonacris.  The  Princess's  story  is  then  told  from 
the  beginning :  her  early  marriage  to  the  man  she  loathed, 
the  cruelty  with  which  she  was  treated  at  the  court  of 
Hanover,  the  appearance  of  Konigsmarck,  who  had  known 
her  as  a  child,  and  his  passion  for  her.  But  the  Princess  in 
the  play  is  represented  to  be  as  virtuous  as  she  was  beauti- 
ful, and  she  resisted  her  lover's  advances  by  every  means 
in  her  power.  The  account  of  the  catastrophe  is  conse- 
quently modified  to  suit  the  theory  of  the  innocence  of  the 
Princess.  It  is  stated  that  one  of  Her  Highness's  ladies  hid 
the  cavalier  in  her  chamber,  and  then  sent  a  message  to  the 
Princess  saying  that  she  was  ill.  The  Princess,  in  compas- 
sion, came  to  see  her,  and  as  soon  as  she  entered  the  room 
the  lover  threw  himself  at  her  feet.  At  this  juncture  the 
Prince,  her  husband,  appeared  on  the  scene  with  a  drawn 
sword  ;  the  Princess  swooned,  and  the  lover  was  hurried 
away,  never  again  to  see  the  light.  The  Princess's  protes- 
tations of  innocence  were  without  avail,  and  as  appearances 
were  against  her  a  divorce  was  effected,  and  she  was  consigned 
to  prison,  where  she  bore  her  fate  with  dignity. 

Such,  in  rough  outline,  is  the  story  of  this  work,  which 
had  a  great  success.  It  was  eagerly  read  in  every  court  of 
Europe  and  continued  to  have  a  large  circulation  far  into 
the  eighteenth  century,  and  even  in  the  present  century 
has  formed  the  unacknowledged  source  of  many  so-called 
"lives"  of  Sophie  Dorothea.  The  lonely  Prisoner  of  Ahlden 


THE  FLIGHT  OF  YEARS 


419 


was  one  of  the  most  talked -about  women  of  her  generation. 
The  secrecy  and  mystery  surrounding  her  only  served  to 
whet  the  public  curiosity. 

The  Electress  Sophia  early  obtained  a  copy  of  the 
Octavia,  and  so  did  her  niece,  the  Duchess  of  Orleans.  We 
find  her  writing  to  her  aunt : — 

July  25,  1708. — "I  am  going  to  read  the  Octavia  over 
again,  as  George  Louis  has  been  kind  enough  to  send  me 
the  key  to  it.  Duke  Antony  Ulrich  makes  Solane  appear 
innocent,  but  that  is  only  done  to  save  the  honour  of  the 
House.  In  all  matters  his  truth  is  mixed  with  a  modicum 
of  lies.  Cotys  I  consider  cold,  but  not  brutal.  There  is  no 
doubt  that  Solane  was  a  coquette  ;  Lassaye  has  told  me 
plenty  about  that,  so  much  that  I  have  not  the  slightest 
doubt  about  it.  I  was  obliged  to  laugh,  when  Duke  Christian 
looks  on  it  as  an  improvement  that  she  had  at  least  stuck 
to  one  in  particular.  ...  I,  however,  find  safety  in  numbers  : 
one  is  dangerous,  as  events  have  proved.  I  should  like  to 
know  if  her  husband  has  still  any  wish  to  see  her,  particu- 
larly as  they  say  she  is  still  beautiful.  It  would  be  only 
right  for  her  mother  to  keep  her  company,  for  her  bad 
upbringing  is  the  cause  of  all  the  daughter's  misfortunes." 

On  this  string,  the  bad  upbringing,  the  Duchess  is  always 
harping.  Still,  as  the  years  went  on,  even  she  could  not 
forbear  some  pity  for  the  imprisoned  woman.  We  find 
the  following  allusions  in  her  letters  to  her  aunt,  and  they 
are  about  the  only  authentic  record  we  have  of  Sophie 
Dorothea  during  these  years : — 

October  27,  1709. — "  It  must  grieve  the  Princess  deeply 
to  know  that  her  children  are  so  near  and  not  to  be  able  to 
see  them  ;  I  really  feel  sorry  for  her.  I  should  like  to  know 
if  her  children  have  any  desire  to  see  her." 

But  apparently  she  repents  of  this  pity,  for  the  next 
year  we  find  this  : — 

May  8,  1710. — "That  the  Princess  always  sits  before 
her  looking-glass  may  be  excused  her,  and  proves  that  her 
nature  is  to  coquette." 

27* 


420   THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

Two  years  later  the  correspondence  between  these  two 
remarkable  women  ceased  for  ever — the  Electress  Sophia 
was  dead.  She  died  within  sight  of  her  promised  land. 

Sophia  expired  suddenly  in  the  gardens  of  Herrenhausen 
on  June  10,  1714,  Queen  Anne  on  the  following  September 
i,  so  the  Electress  missed  being  Queen  of  England  by 
a  little  more  than  two  months,  and  died  with  the  desire 
of  her  heart  ungratified.  "  I  care  not  when  I  die,"  said  this 
dauntless  old  woman,  "  if  on  my  tomb  it  be  recorded  that 
I  was  Queen  of  Great  Britain."  But  on  her  coffin  in  the 
vault  at  Herrenhausen  it  is  only  written  that  she  was 
"  Heiress  of  Britain  ".  Perhaps  this  was  a  retribution  on 
her  for  her  harshness  to  her  unhappy  daughter-in-law, 
Sophie  Dorothea. 


CHAPTER  XXVIII. 

CROWN  AND  GRAVE. 

(1714-1726.) 

Dead,  long  dead, 

Long  dead ! 

And  my  heart  is  a  handful  of  dust. 

TENNYSON,  Maud. 

A  FEW  hours  after  Queen  Anne  breathed  her  last  the 
Elector  of  Hanover  was  proclaimed  in  London  as  George 
I.  King  of  Great  Britain  and  Ireland  as  quietly  as  if  he  had 
been  undisputed  heir  to  the  throne,  and  Lord  Berkeley  was 
sent  with  a  fleet  to  Orange  Polder,  in  Holland,  to  bring 
over  the  new  King.  The  news  was  speedily  conveyed  to 
Hanover  ;  but  George  received  it  without  enthusiasm,  and 
showed  no  haste  to  enter  upon  his  inheritance.  When  he 
at  last  set  out  for  his  new  dominion  he  took  with  him  a 
horde  of  Hanoverian  parasites,  and  two  unlovely  women, 
one  his  mistress,  Ermengarda  Melusina  von  Schulenburg, 
and  the  other  Madame  Kielmansegge,  a  daughter  of 
Countess  Platen,  but  whether  the  King's  mistress,  or 
half-sister,  or  both,  must  remain  a  vexed  question.  She 
herself  claimed  to  be  the  daughter  of  Ernest  Augustus, 
and  George  I.  appears  to  have  acknowledged  the  kinship.1 
Accompanied  by  these  two  favourites,  King  George  set 
sail  from  Orange  Polder,  where  the  English  fleet  was  wait- 
ing, and  landed  two  days  later  at  Greenwich.  He  was  not 
left  stranded  on  the  mud  this  time,  as  in  the  days  of  his 
former  visit  when  he  came  a-courting  the  Lady  Anne  of 
York.  A  servile  crowd  of  place-hunters  was  now  awaiting 
him  whose  fervent  expressions  of  loyalty  he  rated  for  what 

1  He  created  her  Countess  of  Darlington,  and  in  the  patent  of  her  peerage, 
which  by  the  courtesy  of  Count  Kielmansegg  I  have  been  permitted  to  see 
at  Gulzow,  the  words  "  dilectam  consanguineam  nostrum  "  appear. 

421 


422    THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

they  were  worth.  Two  days  later  the  King  made  his 
public  entry  into  London.  His  heavy,  ungainly  presence 
and  ungracious  manner  did  not  impress  the  populace 
favourably ;  but  their  dislike  changed  to  derision  when 
they  saw  the  two  hideous  women  by  whom  he  was  accom- 
panied, and  they  relieved  their  feelings  by  hoots  and  yells. 
So  entered  into  his  kingdom  the  first  of  our  Hanoverian 
Sovereigns. 

In  her  lonely  castle  of  Ahlden  Sophie  Dorothea  heard 
of  the  splendid  heritage  of  the  English  crown  ;  but  she  had 
no  regrets  on  that  score,  all  she  grieved  for  was  her  loss  of 
liberty.  The  accession  of  George  I.  made  no  difference  to 
her  lot ;  she  was  still  kept  in  durance  vile,  still  styled 
Duchess  of  Ahlden,  and  refused  the  rank  and  title  of  Queen 
as  she  had  been  refused  the  rank  and  title  of  Electress. 
Yet  she  was  dejure,  if  not  de  facto,  queen  consort  of  George 
I.,  albeit  a  disowned  and  uncrowned  one,  as  Caroline  of 
Brunswick  was,  nearly  a  century  later,  the  uncrowned  con- 
sort of  George  IV.  There  seems  little  authority  for  the 
statement  made  by  Doran  and  others  that,  previous  to  the 
King's  departure  for  England,  he  made  overtures  through  a 
confidential  minister  to  his  imprisoned  wife  for  a  reconcilia- 
tion, and  on  this  and  other  occasions  he  was  met  by  her 
words  :  "  If  I  am  guilty,  I  am  not  worthy  of  him  ;  if  I  am 
innocent,  he  is  not  worthy  of  me".  It  is  also  said  that  she 
stipulated,  as  a  preliminary,  for  a  public  apology  and  per- 
fect freedom,  and  as  this  was  refused  negotiations  broke 
down.  But  in  the  face  of  other  evidence  it  seems  unlikely 
that  the  King  would  have  entered  upon  such  negotiations 
at  all.  He  had  never  shown  the  least  wish  to  have  his  wife 
back  again,  and  she  had  always  declared  her  determination 
never  to  return  to  conjugal  relations  with  him  on  any  pretext 
whatever ;  it  may  be  doubted  if  the  prospect  of  becoming 
Queen  Consort  of  England  would  have  been  sufficiently 
dazzling  to  have  tempted  her  to  rejoin  him. 

Viewed  as  a  matter  of  policy,  it  would  have  been  a  good 
thing  if  George  I.  could  have  taken  his  wife  to  England 
with  him.  Though  now  well  advanced  in  middle  life 
(Sophie  Dorothea  was  nearly  fifty  years  of  age  and  had 
been  imprisoned  twenty  years),  she  was  still  beautiful,  and 
her  many  accomplishments,  her  grace  and  dignity,  would 
have  lent  a  charm  to  the  dull  court  of  St.  James  and  have 


CROWN  AND  GRAVE  423 

helped  to  popularise  the  Hanoverian  regime.  But  Sophie 
Dorothea  had  never  shown  herself  une  femme  complaisante, 
and  would  most  surely  have  objected  to  the  harem  which 
accompanied  her  husband  to  England.  Knowing  this, 
George  I.  doubtless  thought  it  better  to  keep  his  wife  shut 
up  in  Ahlden  than  to  embark  upon  any  hazardous  scheme 
of  reconciliation.  His  hands  were  full  enough  of  domestic 
worries  without  being  troubled  with  any  more.  His  quarrels 
and  bickerings  with  the  Prince  of  Wales  were  matters  of 
common  notoriety,  and  reflected  little  credit  on  the  dynasty ; 
so  every  effort  was  made  to  keep  the  other  family  scandal 
hidden  from  his  English  subjects.  Some  of  the  Hanoverian 
suite  who  accompanied  the  King  to  England  gave  out  that 
His  Majesty  was  a  widower  ;  others  that  his  wife  was  mad  ; 
and  others  that  she  was  a  Papist ;  but  the  Jacobites  ferreted 
out  the  truth,  and  did  not  scruple  to  make  the  most  of  it. 

The  harshness  with  which  the  King  treated  his  consort 
formed  the  favourite  indictment  against  him,  and  was 
always  brought  up  at  popular  demonstrations,  as,  for 
instance,  on  the  anniversary  of  the  death  of  Queen  Anne, 
until  the  end  of  his  reign.  The  story  of  Sophie  Dorothea's 
hardships  and  misery  in  her  mysterious  castle  was  greatly 
exaggerated,  and  any  allusion  to  the  subject  was  resented 
by  the  King,  who  was  especially  sensitive  on  this  score. 
He  even  thought  it  possible  that  his  wife  might  escape 
from  her  prison,  come  over  to  England,  and  proclaim  the 
story  of  her  wrongs  ;  so  when  he  left  Hanover  he  gave 
orders  that  she  was  to  be  guarded  more  closely  than  ever. 
This  espionage  was  accompanied  by  extraordinary  care 
for  her  health  ;  the  most  loving  husband  could  not  have 
been  more  solicitous.  In  addition  to  her  resident  doctor 
at  Ahlden,  court  physicians  from  Hanover  visited  the 
captive  at  stated  intervals  and  made  reports.  This  solici- 
tude arose,  not  from  regard,  but  from  superstition.  "  It  is 
known,"  writes  Walpole,  "  that  in  Queen  Anne's  time 
there  was  much  noise  about  the  French  prophets,  and  it 
certainly  was  a  most  superstitious  age.  One  of  this  com- 
pany, a  prophetess  Deborah,  who  was  much  esteemed  for 
her  prophetic  gifts,  once  came  to  Hanover  and  told  King 
George,  who  was  then  Elector,  to  take  every  care  of  his 
wife,  as  he  would  certainly  not  survive  her  twelve  months." 

Like  all    Germans,  George    I.  was   very   superstitious, 


424   THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

and  Madame  Schulenburg  was  even  more  so  ;  so  orders 
were  given  that  everything  should  be  done  to  keep  the 
prisoner  at  Ahlden  in  good  health.  To  this  she  probably 
owed  what  liberty  she  possessed,  including  her  daily 
drives.  The  reports  which  reached  her  tyrant  from  time 
to  time  were  reassuring,  for  the  captive  enjoyed  the  best 
of  health,  to  which  her  regular  life  no  doubt  contributed. 

Her  one  grievance  now  was  her  imprisonment,  against 
which,  during  the  whole  of  her  residence  at  Ahlden,  she 
did  not  cease  to  protest  and  struggle.  Time  only  intensi- 
fied her  desire  for  freedom.  Short  of  this  she  bore  her  lot 
with  fortitude  and  resignation,  and  even  her  enemies  gave 
grudging  testimony  to  the  admirable  way  in  which  she 
ordered  her  life.  The  daily  round,  weary  and  monoton- 
ous though  it  was,  brought  little  duties  which  she  never 
neglected.  Her  household  and  estates  were  admirably 
managed,  and  in  the  country  around  the  poor  rose  up 
and  called  her  blessed.  When  the  village  of  Ahlden  was 
burnt  down  in  1715  she  rebuilt  it  at  her  own  expense,  and 
widened  the  view  from  the  castle.  She  derived  great  com- 
fort from  the  consolations  of  religion,  and  every  Sunday 
she  took  the  sacrament  in  the  presence  of  her  household, 
and  prayed  God  to  forgive  her  enemies  and  turn  their 
hearts.  Even  against  her  arch-enemy,  her  husband,  she 
at  this  time  said  nothing.  The  only  ray  of  light  in  her 
gloom  were  the  visits  of  her  mother,  who,  despite  her 
advanced  age  and  increasing  infirmities,  still  came  from 
Wienhausen  to  see  her  beloved  daughter  as  often  as  she 
was  permitted  to  do  so.  She  also  found  relief  in  her 
literary  labours  ;  she  was  always  a  graceful  and  ready 
writer,  and  in  her  later  years  she  cultivated  this  faculty 
to  her  utmost.  She  wrote  her  memoirs  in  the  hope  that 
they  would  be  permitted  to  see  the  light  ;  but  they  were 
never  given  to  the  world,  though  many  spurious  imitations 
have  been  foisted  on  the  public.  It  is  believed  also  that 
romance  and  poetry  flowed  from  her  pen  ;  reams  and 
reams  of  paper  were  covered  by  her  handwriting,  and  boxes 
and  boxes  of  manuscripts  accumulated  at  Ahlden  during 
the  long  years  of  her  captivity,  most  of  them  circling 
around  the  tale  of  her  own  sad  lot,  and  chiefly  written 
with  a  view  to  setting  herself  right  with  the  world.  All 
these  papers  were  ultimately  suppressed,  burned,  or  other- 


SOPHIE    DOROTHEA,    Si^L-OND    QUEEN    OF    PRUSSIA. 

(DAUGHTER  OF  SOPHIE  DOROTHEA  AND  GEORGE  i.). 
From  the  painting  by  Johann  I..  Hirschmann. 


CROWN  AND  GRAVE  425 

wise  destroyed  by  order  of  the  Hanoverian  government, 
and,  save  for  a  few  scattered  fragments  of  little  value, 
nothing  has  been  left  ;  her  literary  labours  were  as  vain 
as  the  labours  of  Sisyphus.  When  she  first  came  to 
Ahlden  she  carried  on  an  extensive  correspondence  with 
friends  and  acquaintances,  but  it  had  gradually  thinned 
by  death.  She  still,  however,  wrote  and  received  many 
letters,  many  of  them  quite  openly,  some  in  secret.  Of 
the  latter,  the  most  important  was  her  correspondence 
with  her  daughter,  the  Queen  of  Prussia. 

Soon  after  the  young  Princess's  marriage  the  King  of 
Prussia  died,  and  on  her  husband's  accession  she  became 
the  second  Queen  of  Prussia.  One  of  her  first  acts  was  to 
take  into  her  service  the  faithful  Eleonore  Knesebeck,  who 
until  this  time  had  been  living  at  Brunswick  and  Wolfen- 
biittel.  From  Knesebeck  the  Queen  learned  the  story  of 
the  captive's  wrongs.1  Her  heart  had  always  yearned  to 
her  imprisoned  mother,  and,  moved  to  fresh  pity  by  the 
recital  of  Knesebeck,  she  determined  to  do  what  she  could 
to  ameliorate  her  lot.  Under  the  seal  of  secrecy  she 
•opened  up  a  correspondence  with  the  prisoner  of  Ahlden. 
As  this  was  contrary  to  the  orders  of  both  the  King  of 
Prussia  and  the  King  of  England,  it  was  necessary  to 
surround  it  with  extraordinary  precautions.  For  several 
years  mother  and  daughter  managed  to  keep  up  a  frequent 
•correspondence,  which  was  maintained  chiefly  through  the 
Count  de  Bar,  who,  since  the  death  of  the  Duke  of  Celle, 
had  acted  as  Sophie  Dorothea's  man  of  business,  and 
looked  after  her  money  matters  ;  Ludwig,  a  privy  council- 
lor at  Berlin ;  Frederick,  one  of  the  Queen  of  Prussia's  pages, 
and  Ludemann,  a  bailiff  at  Ahlden  also  assisted.  Many 
communications  passed  between  mother  and  daughter, 
not  .only  on  private  matters,  but  on  public  affairs  ;  the 
mother  always  imploring  her  daughter  to  aid  her  to  gain 
her  liberty,  the  daughter  always  promising  to  do  her  best, 
counselling  patience,  and  sending  from  time  to  time  little 
gifts  to  mark  her  good-will.  The  King  of  Prussia  soon 
got  to  know  what  was  going  on,  but  he  discreetly  shut  his 

1  It  is  probable  that  the  Queen  of  Prussia  knew  also  of  her  mother's 
mistakes,  for  the  letters  which  passed  between  Sophie  and  Konigsmarck,  now 
in  the  Berlin  archives,  are  supposed  to  have  been  sent  to  Berlin  from  Hanover 
to  prejudice  the  Queen  against  the  prisoner  of  Ahlden. 


426   THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

eyes  for  reasons  of  his  own.  He  knew  that  his  mother-in- 
law  was  possessed  of  a  large  property  entirely  under  her 
control,  and  was  also  heiress  to  another.  At  her  death 
she  would  leave  her  daughter  a  substantial  share,  if  not 
the  whole,  and  she  was  therefore  a  person  to  be  humoured. 
The  Queen  of  Prussia  knew  this,  too,  and  subsequent 
events  seem  to  show  that  this  knowledge  was  not  without 
its  influence  on  her  display  of  filial  affection.  But  the 
poor  lady  at  Ahlden  believed  her  daughter's  solicitude  to 
be  all  born  of  love,  and  she  gave  back  the  love  fourfold. 
She  was  of  a  warm-hearted,  affectionate,  and  impulsive 
disposition,  a  nature  years  of  solitude  and  misery  had 
neither  warped  nor  soured. 

King  George  would  have  been  very  angry  if  he  had 
known  of  this  correspondence ;  but  he  was  now  chiefly  in 
England,  and  he  tried  to  forget  the  very  existence  of  his 
wife. 

Far  away  from  Ahlden,  he  was  acquitting  himself  after 
his  manner  in  his  new  dominions.  He  loved  not  England  ; 
he  never  troubled  to  learn  the  language,  nor  to  make  him- 
self acquainted  with  the  laws  and  customs  of  the  country 
over  which  he  was  called  to  reign.  He  left  all  government 
in  the  hands  of  his  ministers,  made  them  responsible,  and 
directed  his  energies  to  plundering  England  for  the  benefit 
of  his  beloved  Hanover.  His  favourite  ladies  followed  suit, 
and  their  greed  and  unloveliness  gave  rise  to  the  grossest 
lampoons. 

As  a  reward  for  their  complaisance  in  following  him  to 
England,  King  George  had  settled  on  them  large  incomes, 
and  lodged  them  in  St.  James's  Palace.  He  created  Schulen- 
burg  Duchess  of  Kendal,  and  Kielmansegge  Countess  of 
Darlington.  These  were  the  ladies  who  graced  the  court 
of  St.  James  under  George  I.  Never  had  England  seen 
more  avaricious  favourites,  not  even  in  the  worst  days  of 
the  Stuarts.  Charles  II.  had  his  mistresses,  numerous  and 
extravagant  enough  in  all  truth,  but  they  were  beautiful,  as 
Lady  Castlemaine,  or  witty,  as  the  Duchess  of  Portsmouth, 
or  good-natured,  like  Nell  Gwynne.  But  the  Georgian 
favourites  were  not  as  these ;  they  represented  vice  in  all 
its  ugliness.  Even  in  their  failings  the  Stuarts  were  pic- 
turesque, and  invested  their  wrongdoing  with  a  certain 
splendour  and  refinement.  But  what  can  be  said  in  defence 


CROWN  AND  GRAVE  427 

of  the  court  of  our  first  Hanoverian  Sovereign  ?  how  pal- 
liate its  utter  grossness,  its  ugliness,  meanness,  and  avarice  ? 
And  as  George  I.  began  his  reign,  so  it  continued  to  the 
end  :  the  English  court,  if  court  it  could  be  called,  had 
never  sunk  so  low.  The  palace  of  St.  James  became  a 
focus  of  shameless  immorality  and  sordid  corruption,  and 
to  it  all  was  added  the  bitterness  of  a  family  feud.  The 
father  hated  the  son,  and  the  son  hated  the  father ;  the 
ministers  hated  the  mistresses,  and  the  mistresses  hated  the 
ministers.  All  was,  in  short,  hatred,  falsehood,  and  intrigue ; 
the  worst  passions  of  human  nature  were  fostered  in  this 
foetid  atmosphere.  Such  was  the  reign  of  the  first  George, 
and  such  was  the  man  who  sat  in  judgment  on  his  wife,  and 
doomed  her  to  lifelong  imprisonment  because,  in  her  youth, 
she  had  loved  one  man,  not  wisely,  but  too  well.  Faugh  ! 
the  air  stifles  us,  let  us  open  the  windows  and  away. 

Back  again  to  Ahlden,  back  to  the  lonely  castle  on  the 
desolate  heath,  over  which  the  wind  swept  shrilly.  Yet, 
shrill  and  biting  though  it  was,  it  at  least  had  no  taint  of 
the  poisonous  breath  of  St.  James's.  Back  again  to  the 
poor  prisoner  of  nearly  thirty  years,  eating  her  heart  out 
in  loneliness  and  woe,  praying  daily  for  the  deliverance, 
that  never  came.  Let  us  hasten  quickly :  it  is  our  last 
journey. 

Early  in  1722  Sophie  Dorothea  lost  the  one  being  whom 
she  could  trust  in  the  world,  the  mother  whose  love  had 
never  failed  her,  and  who,  in  the  darkest  hour,  sought  to 
protect  her  interests  and  defend  her  good  name  against 
all  the  world.  Since  her  husband's  death  the  Duchess  of 
Celle,  though  grudgingly  accorded  the  outward  honours 
due  to  her  rank,  had  been  subject  to  many  petty  insults  and 
annoyances  from  the  Hanoverian  government,  which  she 
suffered  uncomplainingly. 

Up  to  a  short  time  of  her  death  the  Duchess  Eleonore 
was  regular  in  her  visits  to  her  daughter.  Her  cheerful 
presence  came  as  the  one  gleam  of  sunshine  in  the  darkness 
of  Ahlden  ;  she  was  never  tired  of  preaching  resignation 
and  of  holding  out  the  hope  of  a  brighter  future.  One  of 
her  last  acts  was  to  again  make  her  will  in  favour  of  her 
daughter,  securing  to  her  more  firmly  all  the  property  she 
possessed,  with  the  exception  of  a  substantial  life  income 
which  she  bequeathed  to  her  old  friend  Duke  Antony  Ulrich 


428   THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

of  Wolfenbiittel.  As  soon  as  she  had  settled  her  earthly 
affairs  the  Duchess  grew  much  weaker,  and  was  warned  that 
her  end  was  near ;  but,  weak  and  ailing  though  she  was,  she 
rose  from  her  bed  and  made  a  supreme  effort  to  visit  her 
daughter  once  more.  She  journeyed  to  Ahlden,  and  had 
her  last  interview  with  the  unhappy  captive,  and  gave  her 
her  blessing.  Mother  and  daughter  parted  with  tears,  fully 
persuaded  they  would  never  meet  again.  Their  forebod- 
ings were  soon  realised,  for  when  the  Duchess  reached 
home  she  returned  to  her  bed,  from  which  she  never  rose 
again.  She  was  buried  in  the  ducal  vaults  of  Celle  next 
her  husband,  but  the  vacant  niche  for  her  statue  in  the 
chancel  above  has  never  been  filled, — another  instance  of 
the  meanness  of  George  I.,  who  carried  his  vindictiveness 
even  beyond  the  grave. 

The  courts  of  England,  Hanover,  and  Berlin  decreed 
mourning  as  in  duty  bound,  and  in  this  the  "  Duchess  of 
Ahlden "  was  permitted  to  join.  Previously  she  had  re- 
ceived no  official  notification  of  the  mournings  and  re- 
joicings in  her  family,  not  even  of  her  father's  death  and 
her  children's  marriages. 

Sophie  Dorothea  had  reason  enough  to  mourn,  God 
knows :  she  had  lost  her  one  true  friend  on  earth,  and  there 
seemed  no  prospect  for  her  but  to  live  on,  uncared  for, 
at  the  mercy  of  the  relentless  tyrant,  her  husband.  Her 
fortitude  of  years  began  to  give  way,  and  in  despair  she 
meditated  wild  plans  of  escape,  and  set  aside  large  sums  of 
money  to  this  end.  But,  alas  !  the  very  people  she  trusted 
took  her  gold  with  one  hand  and  betrayed  her  with  the 
other.  For  a  little  time  she  was  not  without  hope.  Her 
son-in-law,  King  Frederick  of  Prussia,  seemed  interested 
in  her  cause  ;  but  his  interest  proved  purely  selfish.  He 
was  absolutely  indifferent  as  to  what  became  of  his  wife's 
mother,  but  was  exceedingly  interested  in  her  fortune,  which 
had  been  largely  augmented  .by  the  death  of  the  Duchess 
of  Celle.  He  employed  an  agent  in  Hanover  to  discover 
exactly  how  matters  stood  and  what  share  his  wife  would 
inherit  from  her  mother.  These  inquiries  gave  great  um- 
brage to  King  George.  But  they  need  not  have  done  so, 
for  when  the  King  of  Prussia  discovered  that  his  Queen 
would  possess  at  least  half  her  mother's  fortune  he  no 
longer  paid  the  captive  of  Ahlden  the  least  consideration, 


CROWN  AND  GRAVE  429 

and  ordered  his  wife  to  discontinue  her  correspondence 
with  her  mother.  Nevertheless,  communications  continued 
to  pass  between  Ahlden  and  Berlin,  though  under  greater 
secrecy  than  before.  The  Count  de  Bar,  who  was  in- 
deed a  traitor  of  the  deepest  dye,  was  suspected  by  the 
Queen  of  Prussia,  and  she  repeatedly  warned  her  mother 
against  him  ;  but  Sophie  Dorothea  clung  to  him  to  the 
very  last. 

One  fertile  subject  of  correspondence  between  mother 
and  daughter  was  on  what  was  called  the  "  double  mar- 
riage scheme  "  between  Sophie  Dorothea's  grandchildren — 
namely,  the  marriage  of  Frederick,  son  of  the  Prince  of 
Wales,  to  Wilhelmina,  daughter  of  the  King  and  Queen  of 
Prussia,  and  of  their  son  Fritz,  afterwards  Frederick  the 
Great,  to  Amelia,  second  daughter  of  the  Prince  of  Wales. 
This  double  marriage  was  a  darling  project  of  the  Queen  of 
Prussia,  cherished  by  her  almost  from  the  time  the  children 
were  born.  She  was  supported  by  her  father,  the  King  of 
England,  but  opposed  by  her  husband,  the  King  of  Prussia. 
The  "Duchess  of  Ahlden"  opposed  it,  too,  and  instructed 
her  agent  at  Berlin  to  work  against  the  scheme,  though  how 
it  could  have  made  any  difference  to  her  passes  imagination. 
This  opposition  so  incensed  the  Queen  of  Prussia  that  she 
sent  word  to  her  mother  to  the  effect  that  when  the  marriage 
scheme  was  an  accomplished  fact  she  would  work  her  hardest 
to  set  her  free,  but  not  until  then.  As  these  marriages 
could  not  come  off  for  years,  in  consequence  of  the  youth 
of  the  Princess  Amelia,  this  message  was  disheartening, 
and  at  first  Sophie  Dorothea  would  not  credit  it ;  but  it 
is  characteristic  that  it  made  no  change  in  her  opposition. 
There  was  no  more  to  be  expected  from  the  King  and 
Queen  of  Prussia.  Foiled  in  the  direction  she  had  hoped 
for  deliverance,  she  fell  back  again  on  plans  of  escape. 
From  time  to  time  she  had  entrusted  Count  de  Bar  with 
large  sums  of  money,  amounting  altogether  to  some  sixty 
thousand  pounds,  which  he  deposited  in  the  Bank  of 
Amsterdam.  He  afterwards  appropriated  most  of  this  to 
his  own  use  ; — but  that  is  to  anticipate.  At  this  time 
Sophie  Dorothea  trusted  him  wholly,  and  her  object  in 
placing  this  money  at  Amsterdam  was  that  it  might  come 
in  useful  to  her  in  case  she  escaped  from  her  husband's 
territory  ;  but  how  she  thought  to  effect  a  flight  from  the 


430    THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

closely  guarded  castle  of  Ahlden  it  is  impossible  to  say. 
In  this  secret  flight  the  Count  de  Bar  was  to  assist.  The 
•Queen  of  Prussia  became  aware  of  the  project,  and  in  much 
alarm  entreated  her  mother  to  be  patient.  She  again 
promised  that  she  would  help  her  as  soon  as  her  pet 
scheme  of  the  double  marriage  was  out  of  the  way,  and 
she  asked  her  mother  to  help  her  to  effect  it.  She  must 
have  meant  help  with  money  to  bribe  ministers  and  agents, 
for  there  was  no  other  way  save  money  in  which  the  im- 
prisoned Princess  could  be  of  any  use.  She  also  advised  a 
'"general  amnesty,"  which  meant  that  her  mother  should 
seek  a  reconciliation  with  King  George,  and  express  her 
willingness  to  submit  to  his  terms,  whatever  they  might  be. 
But  Sophie  Dorothea  had  a  proud  spirit,  which  all  these 
years  of  captivity  could  not  break,  and  she  was  a  difficult 
woman  to  deal  with.  Much  as  she  desired  her  freedom, 
she  would  make  no  sacrifice  of  dignity  or  consistency. 

In   the  following  letter  to  the  Count  de  Bar,  then   at 
Berlin,  she  thus  expresses  herself  on  these  proposals  : — 


"[AHLDEN,]  July  28,  1725. 

"  I  thank  God  that  nothing  in  the  world,  not  even  the 
most  dazzling  and  tempting  prospect,  would  make  the  least 
impression  upon  me,  or  lead  me  into  any  meanness.  I 
repeat  that  you  are  absolutely  master  to  do  as  you  please  ; 
but  it  is  impossible  for  me  ever  to  give  my  approval  to 
a  marriage  scheme  which  would  indubitably  separate  my 
daughter  from  my  interests,  and  the  consequences  of  which 
speak  but  too  plainly  for  themselves.  As  to  the  '  general 
amnesty'  which  is  deemed  absolutely  necessary,  I  told  you 
last  year  what  I  thought  on  that  subject.  I  merely  add 
now  that  I  have  Christian  sentiments,  and  am  neither  im- 
placable nor  animated  with  an  unworthy  desire  of  vengeance. 
I  am  far  from  wishing  anything  harsh  or  cruel.  But  it 
would  be  very  mortifying  to  me  to  find  myself  disappointed 
of  all  satisfaction  after  so  many  outrages  and  insults  ;  and 
this  cannot  be  considered  as  a  criminal  revenge,  but  rather 
as  a  point  of  honour,  conformable  to  Holy  Scripture  and  the 
example  of  St.  Paul.  See  the  Acts  of  the  Apostles,  chap. 
xvi.,  vv.  36,  37. 

"  SOPHIE  DOROTHEA." 


CROWN  AND  GRAVE  431 

There  is  little  doubt  that  Sophie  Dorothea  was  wise 
in  refusing  to  part  with  money  to  advance  the  Queen  of 
Prussia's  marriage  schemes  without  some  adequate  security 
that  her  daughter  would  really  carry  out  her  promise  ;  and 
she  was  probably  wise,  too,  in  spurning  the  idea  of  a  general 
amnesty  if  that  involved  submission  to  George  I.  and  his 
mistresses.  She  would  sacrifice  her  dignity  and  consistency 
on  the  one  hand,  and  would  gain  nothing  on  the  other,  for 
it  was  hardly  likely  that  the  King's  promises,  supposing 
that  he  made  any,  were  to  be  trusted.  This  uncompromis- 
ing attitude  on  her  part  furnished  the  Queen  of  Prussia  with 
a  further  pretext  for  doing  nothing  more  for  her  mother, 
and  she  directed  her  confidential  agent,  Frederick,  to  com- 
municate, through  Ludemann,  the  bailiff  of  Ahlden,  "that 
affairs  were  in  so  bad  a  state  that  it  was  impossible  to  take 
any  steps  without  making  bad  worse  and  causing  more  un- 
happiness,  but  that  time  and  Providence  would  ameliorate 
everything  ".  She  also  refused  to  receive  the  Count  de  Bar 
any  more  at  Berlin,  as  she  distrusted  both  his  good  faith 
and  his  ability.  Frederick,  the  Queen's  agent,  was  sent  to 
interview  Ludemann,  either  at  Ahlden  or  at  some  place 
near,  and  to  communicate  to  him  verbally  the  Queen's 
message  to  her  mother.  Ludemann  drew  up  a  report  of 
his  conversation  with  Frederick,  which,  inter  alia,  runs  as 
follows  : — 

"  The  Queen  sends  her  best  regards  to  Her  Highness 
with  the  strongest  assurances  of  her  entire  affection,  respect, 
and  filial  devotion,  soliciting  to  maintain  a  place  in  the 
affections  of  her  mother,  for  whom  she  forwards  some 
souvenirs.  She  would  with  pleasure  have  written,  but  the 
circumstances  in  which  she  is  placed  render  writing  too 
hazardous.  The  least  movement  in  Her  Highness's  favour 
cannot  be  made  without  great  danger." 

The  Queen  of  Prussia's  messenger  went  on  to  say  that 
all  correspondence  and  communications  must  cease  for  a 
time.  On  behalf  of  the  Queen  he  again  denounced  the 
Count  de  Bar  as  a  dangerous  traitor.  Ludemann,  Sophie 
Dorothea's  agent,  commented  on  the  Queen's  dislike  of  the 
Count  as  very  strange,  considering  how  long  a  time  he  had 
served  Sophie  Dorothea  and  her  father  before  her.  After 


432    THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

considerable  parley  the  report  shows  that  the  Queen  again- 
promises  her  mother  that  if  she  would  only  keep  quiet  until 
the  affair  of  the  double  marriage  was  arranged  she  would 
do  all  she  could  to  help  her.  It  is  clear  from  this  that  the 
Queen  of  Prussia's  interest  was  a  purely  selfish  one. 

Sophie  Dorothea  was  greatly  dissatisfied  with  Lude- 
mann's  report  of  his  interview  with  the  Queen's  agent  and 
refused  to  believe  much  of  it.  She  was  unable  to  appreciate 
the  necessity  of  secrecy,  she  refused  the  presents,  and  ex- 
pressed her  confidence  and  trust  in  the  Count  de  Bar  in 
the  two  following  spirited  memoranda  to  her  daughter : — 

"  AHLDEN,  August  26,  1725. 

"  I  have  received  two  portraits  in  miniature  set  in  gold  ; 
a  gold  repeater  watch  garnished  with  cornelian,  with  chain 
seal  and  gold  hook  ;  an  etui  of  mother-of-pearl,  with  side 
garnished  in  like  manner ;  and  a  snuff-box  covered  with  a 
rare  agate,  which  I  keep  till  they  can  be  returned  with  safety,, 
it  being  neither  just  nor  proper  that  I  should  accept  them 
in  the  present  juncture  and  circumstances — except  the  two- 
portraits,  which  I  shall  retain. 

"  SOPHIE  DOROTHEA." 

"AHLDEN,  September  5,  1725. 

"  In  case  there  should  be  repeated  at  Hanover  what  has 
been  said  at  Rhaburg  concerning  the  Count  de  Bar,  I  de- 
clare that  my  firm  and  constant  will  is  that  the  Count  de 
Bar  shall  continue  to  act  for  me  in  my  affairs  as  he  has 
always  done  hitherto.  I  ought  not,  and  I  will  not,  prevent 
those,  whom  Heaven  in  its  infinite  mercy  has  been  pleased 
to  raise  up  to  have  compassion  on  me,  from  acting  in  my 
favour  and  for  my  interest.  But  in  future  he  shall  not 
annoy  anybody  in  Berlin. 

"  SOPHIE  DOROTHEA." 

In  the  autumn  of  the  same  year  Sophie  Dorothea  learned 
that  the  Queen  of  Prussia  was  coming  to  Hanover  on  a 
visit  to  her  father,  George  I.,  who  had  come  over  from 
England  to  spend  a  few  months  in  his  beloved  electorate. 
As  the  Queen  would  be  so  near  her  mother's  prison  Sophie 
Dorothea  prayed  earnestly  to  see  her,  and  the  daughter 


CROWN  AND  GRAVE  433 

half  promised  to  come.  The  moral  effect  of  a  visit  from 
the  Queen  of  Prussia  to  the  neglected  captive  at  Ahlden 
would  have  been  very  great,  and  could  not  have  failed  to 
benefit  the  prisoner,  at  least  in  increased  consideration  and 
respect.  It  would  have  been  a  sign  to  all  the  world  that 
her  daughter  was  on  her  side.  No  wonder  the  friendless 
captive  desired  it  so  ardently !  When  she  heard  that  her 
daughter  had  arrived  at  Hanover  she  dressed  herself  with 
more  than  usual  care,  and  looked  out  from  her  window  day 
after  day  across  the  moorland.  It  was  a  different  face  from 
that  which  had  looked  out  from  the  casement  thirty  years 
before  in  the  bloom  of  its  youthful  beauty.  The  Princess's 
hair  was  white  now,  and  her  face  lined  and  drawn,  but  she 
still  retained  traces  of  great  loveliness. 

The  days  went  by  and  the  Queen  came  not,  though 
day  by  day,  and  hour  by  hour,  the  captive  strained  her 
eyes  in  the  direction  of  Hanover  and  her  ears  for  sound  of 
the  chariot  wheels.  When  the  Queen  of  Prussia  arrived  at 
Hanover  she  was  afraid  to  move  in  the  matter.  Her  hus- 
band forbade  her  to  go  to  Ahlden,  for  fear  of  angering  her 
father,  whom  he  wished  to  conciliate.  So  she  abandoned 
the  idea,  and  lost  her  one  chance  of  seeing  her  mother. 

By-and-by  the  news  came  to  Ahlden  that  the  Queen 
of  Prussia  had  gone  back  to  Berlin,  and  for  the  first  time 
for  long  years  Sophie  Dorothea  gave  up  hope.  She  had 
counted  so  much  on  this  visit,  built  so  many  castles  in  the 
air  upon  it,  made  so  many  plans,  gone  over  again  and  again 
what  she  would  say  and  how  she  would  greet  her  daughter, 
that  the  disappointment  nearly  broke  her  heart.  Her 
daughter  had  failed  her,  as  all  others  had  failed.  It  was  a 
convincing  proof  that,  despite  all  protestations,  the  Queen 
of  Prussia  could  not,  or  would  not,  make  any  decisive  step 
on  her  mother's  behalf. 

The  result  of  this  disappointment  was  to  make  Sophie 
Dorothea  cling  more  closely  to  the  Count  de  Bar  and  centre 
her  hopes  around  him.  She  caught  at  him  as  the  drown- 
ing man  catches  at  the  proverbial  straw.  One  by  one  her 
friends  had  died  or  proved  false,  the  last  of  the  list  of 
traitors  being  Ludemann,  the  bailiff  of  Ahlden  ;  but  she 
trusted  all  the  more  implicitly  the  Count  de  Bar,  who  was 
the  greatest  traitor  of  all.  She  wrote  to  him  when  she  was 
still  smarting  under  the  sense  of  her  daughter's  neglect 

28 


434   THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

the  following  letter,  in  which  she  again  assures  him  of  her 
confidence  : — 

"  AHLDEN,  September  27,  1725. 

"  Words  cannot  express  all  I  think,"  she  writes,  "  all  I 
have  always  thought  without  the  least  diminution,  all  I  shall 
never  cease  to  think.  In  the  name  of  God,  be  always  the 
same  to  me,  as  I  shall  be  to  you  till  my  latest  breath." 

She  speaks  of  the  "  dragons  and  spies  "  by  whom  she 
was  surrounded,  and,  after  adverting  on  the  marriage  scheme 
and  the  treachery  of  Ludemann,  she  goes  on  to  say  : — 

"  I  am  of  opinion  that  the  whole  of  this  black  business 
[the  treachery  of  Ludemann]  has  been  got  up  by  the  clique 
here  for  reasons  and  ends  easy  to  be  perceived.  This  affair 
has  caused  me  very  deep  and  poignant  grief,  and  shows 
me  the  deplorable  and  dangerous  condition  wherein  I  am 
placed — a  condition  which  is  getting  worse  and  worse.  I 
am  surrounded  by  people,  without  pity  or  justice,  and  their 
number  is  daily  increasing.  I  am  incessantly  exposed  to 
their  calumnies,  false  suspicions,  and  ill-turns.  They  now 
have  it  more  than  ever  in  their  power  to  invent  words  and 
actions  which  they  attribute  to  me,  and  so  strive  to  blacken 
my  reputation.  Ludemann,  who  was  the  only  channel 
through  which  I  could  learn  anything  and  make  known  the 
truth,  is  at  present  absolutely  devoted  to  them. 

"  If  I  feared  poison  many  years  ago,  my  present  cir- 
cumstances are  such  as  to  strengthen  that  fear ;  and  as 
life  is  not  now  indifferent  to  me,  this  suspicion,  added  to 
all  the  rest,  would  surely  disturb  my  tranquillity  did  not 
the  Almighty  grace  of  God  preserve  peace  in  my  heart 
in  spite  of  all  storms,  and  give  me  increased  strength  and 
courage  in  proportion  to  the  greater  need  I  have  of  them  : 
I  have  never  had  more  need  of  them  than  now.  You  may 
rest  assured  that,  with  the  aid  of  that  divine  grace,  nothing 
on  earth  will  bring  about  a  change  in  my  sentiments  or 
conduct,  nor  lead  me  to  any  action  in  the  slightest  degree 
mean  and  unworthy.  I  will  resolutely  and  steadfastly  ad- 
here to  what  I  have  held  fast  for  so  many  years,  without  the 
smallest  change.  My  honour  and  what  I  owe  to  myself 
demand  it,  and  every  conceivable  reason  strengthens  me 
in  this  policy. 


CROWN  AND  GRAVE  435 

"  My  health  is  good,  and  better  than  might  be  expected 
in  my  agitated  state  of  mind.  The  God  of  mercy  supports 
me  in  a  marvellous  way  ;  and  I  take  care  of  myself,  since  my 
friends  have  the  goodness  to  be  interested  in  my  welfare. 
The  strong  expressions  I  made  use  of  in  my  preceding 
letter  on  this  subject  were  intended  to  convey  an  idea  of 
the  great  annoyance  I  am  suffering  on  all  sides.  Indeed, 
they  excite  in  me  an  intense  disgust  of  this  place  and  an 
ardent  desire  to  leave  it." 

Sophie  Dorothea  was  utterly  alone  in  the  world  :  her 
mother  was  dead,  her  daughter  had  failed  her,  and  she  was 
at  the  mercy  of  hirelings,  who,  under  pretext  of  sympathy, 
were  continually  robbing  and  betraying  her.  Her  one  idea 
now  was  to  effect  an  escape  from  Ahlden.  A  year  later 
we  find  her  writing  again  to  the  Count  de  Bar  ;  in  her  letter 
she  speaks  of  the  "  unheard-of  injustice  and  fury  of  my 
enemies,"  and  entreats  him  to  come  to  her.  She  goes  on 
to  say  : — 

"AHLDEN,  August  19,  1726,  3  o'clock  in  the  morning. 

"  I  must  confess  that  the  news  that  has  come  from  be- 
yond the  sea  occupies  my  mind.  God  grant  there  may  be 
no  obstacle  to  delay  what  I  have  at  heart  more  than  I  can 
express !  You  are  not  ignorant,  sir,  what  that  is :  all  my 
sentiments  are  known  to  you.  I  picture  myself  becoming 
a  monster  losing  its  sight,  but  I  have  hardly  thought  about 
it.  I  doubt  whether  Heaven,  in  exchange,  will  be  pleased 
to  open  certain  eyes.  I  am  entirely  ignorant  of  what  is 
passing  in  the  world  except  what  I  learn  from  the  ordinary 
political  news.  I  am  guarded,  and  more  pains  than  ever 
are  taken  to  prevent  my  learning  anything." 

This  was  the  last  cry  for  help.  The  Count  de  Bar 
hastened  not  to  her  succour,  but,  instead,  the  Pale  Horse- 
man came  galloping  over  the  heath.  Deliverance  was  at 
hand — the  last  deliverance,  whose  name  is  Death.  Yet 
before  that  came  Sophie  Dorothea  had  to  drink  the  last 
drop  in  her  cup  of  bitterness.  Convincing  proof  was 
brought  her  that  the  man  in  whom  she  trusted  was  added 
io  the  long  list  of  traitors.  He  had  never  meant  to  come, 

28* 


436   THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

he  had  never  wished  her  to  escape ;  she  had  henceforth  no 
one  to  whom  she  could  turn. 

This  was  the  last  betrayal  the  unhappy  woman  had  to 
suffer.  Under  it  strength  and  fortitude  gave  way.  She 
wrote  one  more  letter  (to  be  delivered  after  her  death), 
and  gave  it  under  seal  to  a  trusty  messenger.  Then  she 
broke  down  utterly,  and  took  to  her  bed  with  an  attack 
of  something  like  brain  fever.  The  Governor  of  the  castle 
sent  hurriedly  to  Hanover,  and  the  news  of  her  serious 
illness  was  conveyed  to  the  King  in  England.  Everything 
that  medical  skill  could  do  was  done  without  avail :  court 
physicians,  apothecaries,  and  surgeons  hurried  from  Hanover 
to  the  lonely  castle  ;  but  they  could  do  nothing.  Confi- 
dential ministers  of  state  came,  too  ;  but  they  were  also 
helpless — they  could  only  listen,  shuddering,  to  the  awful 
ravings  of  the  dying  woman.  The  seal  she  had  set  on  her 
lips  for  years  was  broken  at  last,  and  day  after  day  as  she 
fought  for  life  she  denounced  the  tyrant  who  had  been  her 
jailer  and  her  judge,  and  cried  to  Heaven  for  vengeance 
upon  him.  She  lost  all  rallying  power,  and  grew  weaker 
and  weaker,  until  at  last,  one  dull  November  day,  when 
the  chill  mists  hung  heavy  over  the  marshes  around  Ahlden, 
Sophie  Dorothea  breathed  her  last  in  the  little  room  which 
had  been  her  prison  for  many  weary  years  ! 

Sophie  Dorothea  died  on  November  13,  1726,  in  the 
sixty-first  year  of  her  age  and  the  thirty-third  of  her  captivity. 


CHAPTER  XXIX. 

RETRIBUTION. 

(1727.) 

My  conscience  hath  a  thousand  several  tongues, 
And  every  tongue  brings  in  a  several  tale, 
And  every  tale  condemns  me  for  a  villain. 

SHAKESPEARE,  King  Richard  III. 

OVER  in  England  the  King  heard  the  news  of  his  wife's 
death  with  ill-concealed  concern,  born  not  of  remorse,  but 
fear.  In  his  superstitious  soul  he  remembered  the  prophecy 
and  trembled.  His  forebodings  of  evil  were  not  lessened 
when  Prince  Waldeck  arrived  from  Hanover  with  secret 
despatches,  which  gave  a  detailed  account  of  the  awful 
deathbed  at  Ahlden  and  the  dying  woman's  appeal  to  the 
retribution  of  Heaven.  Nor  did  the  King  derive  much 
comfort  from  his  withered  mistresses,  for  the  Duchess  of 
Kendal,  to  whom  he  confided  all,  had  a  firm  faith  in  omens, 
visions,  and  soothsayers,  and  was  even  more  troubled  than 
he.  By  way  of  averting  the  curse  she  became  more  devout 
than  ever,  and  attended  church  as  many  as  four  times  a  day, 
notwithstanding  the  fact  that  the  Lutheran  minister  at  the 
German  Chapel  Royal  refused  her  the  communion  on  the 
ground  that  she  was  living  in  unrepentant  adultery.  King 
George  sought  to  shake  off  his  depression  by  every  means 
in  his  power,  and  the  very  evening  that  he  learned  the 
tidings  his  wife  was  no  more  he  sought  distraction  by  going 
to  see  a  performance  of  the  Italian  comedians  at  the  Hay- 
market,  accompanied  by  the  Duchess  of  Kendal  and  Lady 
Darlington.  The  next  day  he  commanded  a  special  per- 
formance at  the  King's  Theatre,  which  was  followed  by 
others,  though  up  to  now  the  play  was  a  pastime  he  had 
very  rarely  indulged  in.  But  all  his  efforts  were  ineffectual, 
for  the  shade  of  his  victim  haunted  him,  and  her  dying  cry 

437 


438    THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

for  vengeance  rang  in  his  ears.  Sophie  Dorothea  was  more 
powerful  in  death  than  in  life. 

Outwardly  the  court  of  St.  James  ignored  the  event, 
and,  beyond  a  line  in  the  London  Gazette  to  the  effect  that 
the  "  Duchess  of  Ahlden  "  had  died  at  Ahlden  on  a  date 
specified,  the  death  of  the  wife  of  the  King  of  England 
and  the  mother  of  the  King  to  be  received  no  official  notice 
whatever.  But  the  court  of  Hanover  on  receipt  of  the 
news  from  Ahlden  had  very  properly  assumed  mourning, 
as  on  the  occasion  of  the  decease  of  the  Duchess  of  Celle. 
When  King  George  heard  this  he  waxed  exceeding  wroth, 
and  sent  peremptory  orders  to  the  Hanoverian  officials  to 
return  to  their  ordinary  wear.  His  anger  was  increased 
when  he  learned  that  the  court  of  Berlin  had  decreed  the 
deepest  mourning,  as  for  a  Queen  of  England  who  was 
also  mother  of  the  Queen  of  Prussia.  It  was  a  natural 
mark  of  respect  for  the  daughter  to  pay,  and  it  showed  to 
all  the  world  that  she  believed  her  mother  to  be  an  inr 
jured  woman.  George  I.  resented  the  court  mourning 
at  Berlin  as  a  personal  affront,  and  protested  ;  but  his 
protest  was  in  vain.  Thus  did  his  mean  malice  pursue  his 
victim  even  in  death. 

Meanwhile  the  body  of  Sophie  Dorothea  lay  in  a  plain 
leaden  coffin  in  the  vaults  of  the  castle  of  Ahlden,  await- 
ing the  King's  orders.  None  dared  pay  the  remains  any 
honour,  nor  even  give  them  a  decent  and  Christian  burial, 
for  fear  of  offending  the  tyrant  in  England.  With  the 
new  year  (1727)  Prince  Waldeck  came  back  from  London 
with  the  royal  command  that  the  "  Duchess  of  Ahlden " 
should  be  buried  with  as  little  ceremony  as  possible  in  a 
grave  dug  in  the  garden  of  the  castle.  But  the  season  w.as 
rainy  and  the  Aller  overflowed  its  banks,  and  though  the 
grave-diggers  dug  again  and  again  in  the  swampy  ground 
the  waters  always  rushed  into  the  grave  and  rendered 
their  labours  vain.  It  was  impossible  to  communicate 
quickly  with  the  King  across  the  sea,  so  the  coffin  was 
ignominiously  carried  back  again  to  the  cellar,  covered 
over  with  a  heap  of  sand,  and  left  until  further  orders.  It 
would  have  been  left  there  until  now,  for  all  the  King 
cared,  had  he  not  been  a  prey  to  superstitious  fears.  He 
could  not  sleep,  he  could  not  rest,  and  life  was  becoming 
a  burden  to  him.  This  may  have  been  due  to  advancing 


RETRIBUTION;  439 

years  and  an  impaired  digestion,  for  he  was  a  coarse  and 
heavy  eater ;  but  the  Duchess  of  Kendal  declared  that 
she  was  warned  in  a  dream  that  it  was  all  the  work  of  the 
unquiet  spirit  of  Sophie  Dorothea,  and  her  ghost  would 
never  rest,  nor  let  the  King  rest,  until  her  body  was  laid 
by  the  side  of  her  ancestors  at  Celle. 

One  May  morning,  therefore,  a  King's  messenger  arrived 
at  Ahlden  from  England  with  orders,  under  the  royal  sign 
manual,  that  the  remains  of  the  "  Duchess  of  Ahlden  "  should 
be  interred  in  the  ducal  burial-vaults  in  the  old  church  of 
Celle  as  quietly  and  expeditiously  as  possible.  That  same 
night  the  body  was  taken  from  the  cellar,  hoisted  on  to 
a  vehicle,  and  conveyed  across  the  moorland  to  Celle,  where 
it  arrived  while  the  little  town  was  still  sleeping.  Three 
or  four  workmen  from  the  castle  were  waiting  in  the  church 
and  everything  was  in  readiness.  Without  any  ceremony 
or  religious  service  the  coffin  was  hurried  down  to  the  vaults 
under  the  chancel,  where  it  lies  until  this  day. 

The  church  above  is  full  of  effigies  of  Sophie  Dorothea's 
ancestors,  whose  deeds  and  renown  are  blazoned  forth  in 
brass  and  marble  and  painted  glass ;  but  there  is  neither 
memorial  nor  inscription  to  mark  the  last  resting-place  of 
the  heiress  of  Celle,  who,  by  virtue  of  her  sufferings,  was 
the  most  famous  of  them  all.  In  the  dark  vault  below,  her 
remains  could  not  be  identified  at  all  were  it  not  for  a  small 
shield  on  the  top  right-hand  corner  of  the  coffin,  containing 
her  name  and  the  dates  of  birth  and  death.  Hard  by  in 
the  "  French  Garden  "  of  Celle  there  stands  a  monument 
to  Caroline  Matilda,  Princess  of  England  and  Queen  of 
Denmark,  whose  sad  lot  closely  resembled  that  of  her 
ancestress  Sophie  Dorothea,  and  whose  body  was  deposited 
in  the  same  vault  half  a  century  later.  But  of  the  heiress 
of  Celle,  direct  ancestress  of  two  of  the  mightiest  sovereigns 
in  the  modern  world,  there  exists  no  monument  whatever. 
Now  that  the  flight  of  years  has  obliterated  the  bitterness 
which  clung  around  her  name  it  is  surely  time  that  some 
memorial  were  raised  to  her  memory.  And  where  more 
fitting  than  in  the  place  of  her  birth,  near  the  grey  walls 
of  the  old  castle  ?  She  was  the  last  princess  of  Celle,  and 
in  the  hearts  of  the  people  the  tradition  of  her  beauty  and 
her  woes  still  lingers. 

The  vision  which  appeared  to  the  Duchess  of  Kendal 


440   THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

must  have  been  a  lying  spirit,  for  though  Sophie  Dorothea 
slept  with  her  forefathers,  no  relief  came  to  her  oppressor. 
King  George  was  overwrought,  nervous,  and  dispirited.  His 
government  was  honeycombed  with  intrigues,  his  quarrel 
with  his  son  was  intensified  in  bitterness  ;  and  not  all  his 
avaricious  mistresses  with  their  ruddled  cheeks  could  give 
him  comfort.  He  was  consumed  with  a  desire  to  return 
to  Hanover.  Peradventure,  like  certain  criminals,  he  felt 
impelled  to  revisit  the  scene  of  his  crime. 

On  June  3,  1727,  a  month  after  the  tardy  burial  of 
his  victim,  the  King  set  out  from  England  for  Hanover. 
Travelling  night  and  day,  he  reached  Dalden  on  the  far 
frontier  of  Holland  at  midnight  on  June  gth.  Here  he 
stopped  to  change  horses  and  he  devoured  a  huge  supper. 
Instead  of  tarrying  for  the  night,  as  his  suite  expected  and 
his  travelling  physician  advised,  for  he  had  eaten  heavily 
and  was  worn  out  with  the  long  journey,  the  King  was 
seized  with  an  overpowering  restlessness  to  reach  Hanover, 
and  started  off  again  at  three  o'clock  in  the  morning. 

As  the  royal  coach  rumbled  out  of  the  courtyard  a 
man  stepped  forth  from  the  shadow  and  threw  a  document 
through  the  window  on  to  the  King's  knees.  Neither  his 
Majesty  nor  his  escort  thought  anything  of  the  incident, 
supposing  the  paper  to  be  one  of  those  many  petitions 
with  which  George  was  wont  to  be  pestered  on  his  return 
to  the  electorate.  By  the  grey  light  of  the  dawn  the  King 
broke  the  seal  and  read,  and  as  he  read  his  hands  shook 
and  his  face  grew  ashen.  It  was  a  letter  from  his  dead 
wife,  written  when  she  felt  the  hand  of  death  upon  her. 
The  trusty  messenger,  to  whom  she  had  given  the  packet, 
had  waited  and  waited  until  the  King  should  come  from 
England  that  he  might  surely  deliver  it  into  his  hands. 
It  was  an  awful  letter  for  a  woman  to  write,  doubly  awful 
for  the  man  to  receive.  It  was  penned  evidently  when 
Sophie  Dorothea's  brain  was  on  fire  with  her  wrongs — 
when  her  reason  was  trembling  in  the  balance  ;  in  it  she 
reiterated  her  sufferings  and  his  cruelty,  cursed  him  with 
her  dying  breath,  and  summoned  him  to  meet  her  within 
a  year  and  a  day  before  the  judgment  throne  of  God,  there 
to  answer  for  the  wrong  he  had  done  her.  To  the  trembling 
tyrant  it  came  like  a  voice  from  the  dead.  He  recalled 
again  the  prophecy  that  he  would  not  long  outlive  his 


RETRIBUTION  441 

wife,  and  now  came  the  confirmation  of  his  fears.  He 
heard  his  victim,  like  an  accusing  angel,  calling  him  to  his 
doom — a  year  and  a  day — a  year  and  a  day, — and  that 
was  last  November.  The  letter  fell  from  his  nerveless 
hands,  there  was  a  rush  of  blood  to  his  eyes,  a  beating  in 
his  brain,  and  he  fell  forward  in  a  fit. 

In  great  alarm  the  equerry  called  a  halt,  and  the  long 
procession  of  coaches  and  escort,  pulled  up  by  the  wayside. 
But  the  King  recovered  almost  immediately,  and,  insisting 
that  it  was  nothing,  angrily  commanded  them  to  proceed, 
l^anden,  the  next  stopping-place,  was  reached  in  a  few 
hours,  and  here  dinner  awaited  the  royal  traveller.  But 
the  King  could  not  eat.  His  indisposition  was  evidently 
worse  than  he  would  admit.  The  surgeons  bled  him  and 
dosed  him  and  advised  a  rest ;  but  their  patient  would 
hear  no  reason,  his  one  desire  was  to  push  forward  to  his 
beloved  Hanover. 

Quitting  Landen  at  sunset,  the  royal  cortege  thundered 
forward  with  all  speed.  An  hour  later  the  King  became 
much  worse,  but  he  hastened  on  as  though  pursued  by  a 
legion  of  furies.  His  escort  would  fain  have  halted  ;  but 
still  the  King  urged  them  on,  leaning  forward  from  the 
window,  and  shouting  "  To  Osnabriick  !  to  Osnabriick ! " 
-as  the  horses  galloped  through  the  gathering  dusk.  Osna- 
briick was  reached  at  ten  o'clock  ;  but  by  that  time  the 
King  had  again  collapsed,  falling  forward  into  the  arms 
•of  his  gentleman  -  in  -  waiting.  They  bore  him  into  the 
palace,  now  occupied  by  his  youngest  brother  Ernest 
Augustus,  bled  him  again,  chafed  his  clenched  hands, 
applied  restoratives;  but  all  in  vain.  George  never  re- 
covered consciousness,  and  died  at  midnight  in  the  very 
room  where  he  was  born  sixty-seven  years  before.  He 
had  obeyed  the  dread  summons,  and  had  gone  to  meet  his 
wife  before  the  judgment  throne  of  God. 

Thus  died  George  I.,  the  first  of  our  Hanoverian  kings, 
unloved  and  unmourned — nay,  not  quite  unmourned,  for 
even  this  man  had  one  who  loved  him.  His  aged  mistress, 
the  Duchess  of  Kendal,  had  not  been  able  to  pack  up  in 
time  to  travel  with  her  liege,  but  was  following  him  with 
all  speed.  When  the  news  of  his  death  was  brought  her 
on  the  road  she  gave  way  to  the  loudest  demonstrations  of 
grief,  beating  her  breast,  tearing  her  hair,  and  filling  the 


442    THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED  QUEEN 

air  with  lamentations.  She  had  lived  with  him  nigh  on 
forty  years,  and  though  he  had  not  been  true  to  her — for  it 
was  not  his  nature  to  be  true  to  any  one — in  his  way  he 
had  been  fond  of  her ;  she  had  become  as  indispensable  to- 
him  as  he  had  to  her. 

The  new  King,  George  II.,  did  nothing  so  far  as  we 
know  to  clear  his  mother's  memory,  though  Horace  Wai- 
pole  writes :  "  The  second  George  loved  his  mother  as 
much  as  he  hated  his  father,  and  purposed,  it  was  said,  if 
she  had  survived,  to  have  brought  her  over  and  declared 
her  Queen-Dowager.  Lady  Suffolk  told  me  her  surprise,, 
on  going  to  the  new  Queen  the  morning  after  George  I.'s 
death,  at  seeing  hung  up  in  the  Queen's  dressing-room  the 
whole  length  of  a  lady  in  royal  robes,  and  in  the  bed- 
chamber a  half-length  of  the  same  person,  which  Lady 
Suffolk  had  never  seen  before."1  They  were  pictures  of 
his  mother,  which  the  Prince  had  till  then  kept  concealed. 
This  hardly  tallies  with  Lord  Hervey's  testimony  of 
George  I  I.'s  reticence  concerning  his  mother,  "whom,"  he 
writes,  "  on  no  occasion  I  ever  heard  him  mention,  not 
even  inadvertently  or  indirectly,  any  more  than  if  such  a 
person  had  ever  had  a  being".'2  The  Jacobites  used  to- 
call  George  II.  "the  little  Konigsmarck "  (an  unfounded 
libel  if  ever  there  was  one !),  and  this  may  have  accounted 
for  his  silence.  Another  poetaster  twitted  "dapper  George" 
with  being  governed  by  his  Queen,  and  advised  him 

...  if  you  would  have  us  fall  down  and  adore  you, 
Lock  up  your  fat  spouse,  as  your  dad  did  before  you, 

which  shows  that  Sophie  Dorothea's  imprisonment  at 
Ahlden  was  fairly  familiar  to  the  English  public. 

That  the  true  story  of  his  mother's  life  became  known 
to  George  II.  is  certain,  for  on  his  first  visit  to  Hanover 
after  ascending  the  throne  of  England  he  ordered  the  secret 
records  of  the  divorce  proceedings,  and  some  of  the  incrim- 
inating letters  to  be  brought  to  him,  and  read  them  through 
carefully.  Extraordinary  care  was  taken  at  Hanover  to 
suppress  any  and  every  compromising  document  or  paper 
which  contained  mention  of  Sophie  Dorothea  or  Konigs- 
marck. Despite  these  precautions,  the  most  damning  evi- 
dence of  all  came  to  light.  Some  workmen  employed  in 

1  Walpole's  Reminiscences.  2Lord  Hervey's  Memoirs. 


RETRIBUTION  44? 

renovating  the  wing  formerly  occupied  by  Sophie  Dorothea 
in  the  Palace  of  Hanover,  came  across  the  skeleton  of  a 
man,  almost  unrecognisable  from  quicklime,  but,  from  a 
ring  and  fragments  of  clothing,  was  identified  as  that  of  the 
missing  Count  Konigsmarck.  Orders  were  given  that  the 
place  should  be  bricked  up  again,  and  the  remains  were 
thrust  out  of  sight  once  for  all — probably  pulverised  and 
cast  into  the  river  Leine. 

These  things  go  to  prove  that  the  son  lacked  the  courage 
to  do  justice  to  his  mother's  memory,  or  he  believed  her 
guilty.  In  death,  as  in  life,  Sophie  Dorothea  continued  to 
be  the  family  skeleton  of  the  House  of  Hanover. 

But  we  can  afford  to  be  more  merciful  in  our  judgment. 
Whatever  were  the  faults  of  her  youth,  she  atoned  for 
them  fourfold.  Her  dauntless  spirit,  her  fortitude,  her  dig- 
nified resignation  through  long  years  of  captivity,  invest 
her  memory  with  a  halo  of  suffering.  Her  love  and  her 
sorrows  plead  for  her — her  sorrows  most  of  all,  for  it  may 
be  doubted  if  either  history  or  romance  can  offer  a  parallel 
to  the  long-drawn  agony  of  the  life  of  this  uncrowned  queen. 


APPENDIX. 


LIST  OF  AUTHORITIES  QUOTED,  AND  BOOKS 
TO  WHICH  REFERENCE  HAS  BEEN  MADE. 

UNPUBLISHED  MSS. 

The  Correspondence  of  Princess  Sophie  Dorothea  and  Philip 
Christopher,  Count  Konigsmarck,  1691-1693  (in  French).  Pre- 
served in  the  University  Library  of  Lund,  Sweden. 

The  Despatches  and  Correspondence  of  Sir  William  Dutton 
Colt,  Envoy  -  Extraordinary  to  the  Princes  of  Brunswick  and 
Liineburg,  1689-1693.  In  the  State  Paper  Office,  London. 

The  Despatches  and  Correspondence  of  Mr.  Cresset  (who  suc- 
ceeded Sir  W.  D.  Colt  at  Hanover]  and  his  Secretaries,  1693-1702. 
In  the  State  Paper  Office,  London. 

The  Despatches  of  Mr.  Poley  (who  succeeded  Mr.  Cresset  at 
Hanover),  1705.  In  the  State  Paper  Office,  London. 

Sundry  Letters  of  Mr.  Stepney,  sometime  British  Envoy  to  the 
Court  of  Dresden,  1694-1695.  In  the  State  Paper  Office,  London. 

Sundry  Letters  and  Papers  (in  French  and  German),  specified 
elsewhere.  Preserved  in  the  Royal  Archives  and  Library,  Han- 
over, and  at  Brunswick  and  Dresden. 

SOME  PUBLISHED  WORKS. 

Die  Herzogin  von  Ahlden,  Stammutter  der  Koniglichen  Hduser 
Hannover  und  Preussen.  Leipzig,  1852.  Now  out  of  print. 
Written  anonymously  by  Count  Schulenburg-Klosterrode. 

Die  Prinzessin  von  Ahlden.  By  Dr.  Adolph  Kocher.  Two 
articles  in  Sybel 's  Historische  Zeitschrift,  1882,  vol.  xlviii. 

Romischen  Octavia,  1707,  vol.  vi.  By  Duke  Antony  Ulrich  of 
Wolfenbiittel. 

445 


446  APPENDIX 

The  Magazine  of  the  Historical  Association  of  Lower  Saxony, 
1879. 

Sophie  Dorothea,  Prinzessin  von  Ahlden  und  Kurfiirstin  Sophie 
von  Hannover.  By  A.  F.  H.  Schaumann.  Hanover,  1879. 

Briefe  der  Herzogin  von  Orleans,  Elizabeth  Charlotte,  an  die 
Kurfiirstin  Sophie  von  Hannover. 

Briefe  der  Prinzessin  Elizabeth  Charlotte  von  Orleans,  1676- 
1722. 

Memoiren  der  fferzogin  Sophie,  nachmals  Kurfiirstin  von  Han- 
nover. Dr.  Adolph  Kocher.  Leipzig,  1879. 

Memoires  du  regne  de  George  I.     "Anon."    The  Hague,  1729. 
Letters  with  Varied  Contents.     Frankfurt  and  Leipzig,  1772. 
Geschichte  der  Herzogin  von  Ahlden.     Copenhagen,  1786. 

Short  Narrative  of  My  Fate  and  Imprisonment.  Hamburg, 
1840.  Edited  by  "W.  L.  Mollor"  (Major  Muller). 

This  purports  to  be  an  autobiography  written  by  the  Princess  Sophie 
Dorothea,  but  it  is  spurious.  Yet  the  deeds  and  letters  quoted  show  that 
the  author  had  access  to  genuine  documents,  and  show  the  writer  to  be 
Major  Muller,  librarian  to  the  late  Duke  of  Cambridge,  Regent  of  Hanover. 

Memoirs  of  Sophie  Dorothea.  Two  vols.  London,  1845.  Out 
of  print.  Translated  into  the  German  also.  Written  anonymously. 
[By  Major  Muller,  sometime  librarian  to  the  late  Duke  of  Cam- 
bridge.] 

This  covers  much  the  same  ground  as  the  Short  Narrative,  and  also 
contains  some  authentic  documents  and  papers.  Like  the  Short  Nar- 
rative it  is  evidently  based  on  Duke  Antony  Ulrich's  Octavia.  But  the 
"  Diary  of  Conversations,"  in  vol.  ii.,  purporting  to  be  written  by  Sophie 
Dorothea,  is  undoubtedly  spurious. 

Aurora  Konigsmarck.  By  Professor  W.  F.  Palmbald.  Six 
vols.  Translated  from  the  Swedish  into  the  German.  Leipzig, 
1853.  Out  of  print. 

Memoirs  of  Aurora  von  Konigsmarck.     By  Cramer. 

An  article  on  Fresh  Contributions  to  the  History  of  the  Hano- 
verian Princess  Sophie  Dorothea.  By  Edward  Bodemann. 

Histoire  Secrette  de  la  Duchesse  d?  Hanover,  Epouse  de  Georges 
Premier.  London,  1732.  Ascribed  to  Baron  von  Poellnitz  (some 
say  erroneously). 

The  Electress  Sophia.  Article  in  The  Quarterly  Review,  vol. 
161. 

Eleonore  d'Olbreuse.  By  the  Baroness  von  Amstel.  Article 
in  Nineteenth  Century,  1898. 


INDEX. 


PAGE 

ACT  OF  SETTLEMENT  .        «,         .  100 
Ahlden,  prisoner  of  .         .  388 

—  Author's  notes  on    .         .         .  392 
Alte  Palais  at  Hanover        .         .     60 
Amalie     Wilhelmina,     Countess 

Lewenhaupt          .  .         .82 

Angelica  d'Olbreuse     .  .         .11 

Anne,  Princess  of  York  .         .     38 

—  Queen  of  England  .  .         .  411 

—  death  of .         .         .  .         .  420 
Antony    Ulrich,    Duke  of  Wolf- 

enbiittel  i 

—  Roman  Octavia       .         .         .  417 
Appendix    .....  445 
Arenswald,  Madame  von      .         .  396 
Augustus,  Duke  of  Brunswick      .  i 

—  Frederick  of  Wolfenbiittel       .  21 

—  betrothed  to  Sophie  Dorothea     22 

—  death  of 25 

—  the  Strong  (Elector  of  Saxony)     89 

—  and  Aurora  Konigsmarck         .  369 
Aurora  Konigsmarck    .         .         .82 

—  and  Augustus  the  Strong         .  369 
Authorities  quoted        .         .         .  445 
Author's  notes  on  Ahlden    .         .  392 


B 


BAR,  COUNT  DE  .         .         .         .  425 
Bergest,  Count  Sigismund  .         .  396 

Berlin 250 

Bernstorff,     Prime     Minister    of 

Celle 33 

Bill  of  Succession         .         .         -41 
Bohemia,  Queen  of  .         .7 

Books  of  reference       .         .         .  445 

Borosky 86 

Bothmer,  Charles  Augustus  von  .  396 
Boyne,  battle  of  the     .         .         .  109 


PAGE 

Brandenburg,  Elector  of  .69 

—  Electress  of    .         .         .  .69 

—  death  of .         .         .         .  .  414 

Breda 7 

Brockhausen,  the  tryst  at    .  .  256 

Brunswick  .         .         .         .  .  in 

Buccolini,      Lucas      (Bucco  or 

Buccow)        ....       3 

—  Signora 3 

Bull-baiting          .         .         .         .83 
Biilow,  Minister  of  Celle     .         .  374 
Bussche,  Councillor     .         .         -3° 

—  marriage  of  .         .  31 

—  Madame,  Mistress  of  George 

Louis 32 

—  banished  from  Hanover  .         .     59 

—  George  von     ....  396 


CAMBRIDGE   and    Prince  George 

Louis  .  .  .  .  -42 
Carlsbad  .  .  .  .  .  109 
Caroline,  Consort  of  George  IV  .  i 

—  of  Anspach,  marriage  of .         .  415 
Catherine  of  Braganza         .         .     38 
Celle,  Castle  of    .         .         .         -13 

Charleroy 39 

Charles  II.  of  England         .         .       4 
Charles,    Prince    of    Brunswick- 

Liineburg  -  .         ...  108 

—  death  of 108 

Christian  Louis,  Duke  of  Celle   .       i 
Christian,  Duke  of  Celle      .         .       9 
Coalition  against  Louis  XIV.      .     98 
Colt,  Sir  William  Dutton     .         .  101 
Consarbriick        .         .         .         -39 
Correspondence  between  Sophie 

Dorothea  and  Konigsmarck    174 

—  history  and  authenticity  of  the  118 


447 


INDEX 


Correspondence,  theory  of  key  to 

cypher 126 

—  between        Knesebeck        and 

Konigsmarck         .          .          .  198 

Court  mistresses .         .         .         •  32 

Cresset,  envoy  at  Hanover  .         .  354 

Crossing  the  rubicon  .         .         .  156 


1) 


DANES,  campaign  against  .  .  277 
Darlington,  Countess  of  .  .  426 
Denmark,  King  of  ...  325 
De  Reuss,  Comte  .  .  .11 
De  Tarente,  Princess  ...  7 

Dist 243 

D'Olbreuse,  Angelica  .         .         .11 

—  Eleonore          ....       8 

—  Marquis  ....       8 
Doubts  and  fears          .         .         .  189 


EAST      FRIESLAND,      PRINCESS- 
DOWAGER  OF         ...  160 
Edict  of  Nantes  ....       7 
Elector  Palatine  of  the  Rhenish 

Provinces  ....  4 
Electors  of  the  German  Empire  .  99 
Eleonore  d'Olbreuse  ...  7 
— -  married  to  George  William  .  10 

—  Madame  von  Harburg    .         .     10 

—  progress  of  .         .         .     13 

—  Countess  of  Wilhelmsburg      .     19 

—  Duchess  of  Celle     .         .         -23 

—  will  of 412 

—  death  of 428 

Elizabeth,  daughter  of  James  I.  .       3 

—  Charlotte,       Duchess       of 

Orleans      .         .         .         .18 

Epsdorff 146 

Ernest  Augustus,  Duke  of  Bruns- 
wick Liineburg  i 
Ernest    Augustus    betrothed    to 

Sophia 6 

—  married  to  Sophia  ...       6 

—  attempt  to  murder  .         .         .  157 


FLANDERS,  campaign  in       .  150 

Fortiere,  Seigneur  de  la       .  371 

Foubert's  Academy      .         .  84 

Frankfort  Fair      .         .         .  233 
Frederick,    Duke    of   Brunswick 

Liineburg                                 .  i 


Frederick,    Prince    Palatine,    ex- 
King  of  Bohemia          .         .       3 

—  the  Great  of  Prussia        .         .     75 

—  Augustus  of  Saxony        .         .     89 

—  Elector  of  Saxony  .         .         -329 

—  William,     Crown     Prince    of 

Prussia      ....  416 

G 

GADD,   J.  H.,    assistant-librarian 

at  Lund  ....  122 
Gardie,  Count  de  la  .  .  .  121 
George.  Duke  of  Brunswick- 

Liineburg      .         .         .         .       i 

—  Augustus  of  Hanover  (George 

II.),  birth  of          ...     65 

—  reminiscences          .         .         .  405 

—  attempt       to       see       Sophie 

Dorothea      ....  406 

—  marriage  of     .         .         .         .  415 

—  Frederick,      Elector     of 

Saxony          ....  329 

—  Louis  (George  I.),  birth  of      .       6 

—  goes  a-wooing         .         .         .     38 

—  disposition  of  ...     39 
at  the  Court  of  Louis  XIV.     .     39 

—  visit  to  England      .         .         .40- 

—  betrothed    to     Sophie    Doro- 

thea       49 

—  married  to  Sophie  Dorothea   .     58 
illness  of         ....  150- 

—  Elector  of  Hanover          .         .  399 

—  Knight  of  the  Garter       .         .  409 

—  King  of  England     .         .         .  421 

—  entry  into  London  .          .         .  422 

—  death  of .         .         .         .         .  441 

—  William,  Duke  of  Hanover     .       i 

—  betrothed  to  Sophia         .         .       5 

—  wooing  of  Eleonore         .          .       8 

—  Duke  of  Celle  ...       9 

—  married  to  Eleonore         .         .     10- 

—  fondness  for  George  II.  .  405 
—  death  of           ....  412 
German  Empire,  Electors  of        .x   99 
Germany,  Emperor  of          .         -14 

Ghent 316 

Gloucester,  Duke  of    .         .         .  400- 
Glove,  the  embroidered        .         .  107 
Gohre  .....  146 

Green,  Mrs.  Everett    .         .         .122- 

H 

HAGUE,  Congress  at  the      .         .  112 
Hamelin,  Castle  of      .   .      .         .   158 


INDEX 


449 


Hanover,  Court  of  .         -59 

—  Alte  Palais      .         .         .         .60 
Harburg,  Madame  von         •         •     10 

Heidelberg 5 

Henry     the      Lion,      Duke      of 

Bavaria  and  Saxony   .         .       i 
Herrenhausen      .         .         .         .61 
Hildebrand,  Konigsmarck's  secre- 
tary        353 

Hungary,  campaign  in         .         .  326 


ILSE,  Abigail       .         .  .  -75 

Ilten,  General  von        .  .  -72 

—  Madame  von  .         .  .  -72 

J 

JAMES  I.  OF  ENGLAND  .  .       3 

—  II.  of  England          .  .  -71 
John  Frederick,  Duke  of  Bruns- 

wick-Liineburg     .  .  .       i 


K 


KENDAL,  DUCHESS  OF         .         .  426 

—  Countess  of  Darlington  .         .  426 
Knesebeck,  El^onore  von    .         .     63 

—  arrest  of 358 

—  prisoner  at  Springe          .         .  374 

—  examination  of        ...  374 

—  removal  to  Schartzfels    .         .  374 

—  escape  of        ....  403 
Kocher,  Dr.          ....  373 
Konigsmarck,     Amalie     Wilhel- 

mina     .          .         .          .         .82 

—  Aurora 82 

—  Count  Carl  John     .         .         -83 

—  trial  of 87 

—  death  of 88 

—  Count     Philip     Christopher, 

boyhood   at  Celle        .         .     20 

—  in  England      .         .         .         .26 

—  at  Hanover     .         .         .         .82 

—  Colonel  of  Hanoverian  Guards     95 

—  and  Countess  Platen        .         .  104 

—  in  the  Morea  ....   106 

—  return^o  Hanover  .         .         -115 

—  entertainment  by    .         .         .  115 

—  correspondence    \vith    Sophie 

Dorothea       ....  139 

—  sent  to  Sweden  as  envoy         .  141 

—  returns  from  the  war       .         .  233 


PAGE 

Konigsmarck  at  Dresden     .        .  332 

—  murder  of        ....  340 

—  burial  of          ....  350 

—  discovery  of  body  of       .         .  443 


LAMBEQUE,  camp  at  .  .  .  173 
Lambeth  manuscripts  .  .  38 
Lassaye,  Marquis  de  .  .  -72 
Leibniz,  Professor  .  .  -35 
Leine  Schloss  at  Hanover  .  .  60 
Leopold,  Emperor  .  .  .98 
Lewenhaupt,  Countess  of  .  .82 

—  Count 82 

Linden,  battle  of         ...  316 
Lockier,  Dean     .         .         .        -34 
Loo     ...         ...  408 

Louis  XIV 28 

—  Defender  of  the  Faith     .         .     28 

—  European  coalition  against     .     98 
Ludemann,  Bailiff  of  Ahlden        .  425 
Luisburg      .....  217 
Lund,  University  of    .         .         .  121 
Luxemburg,  French  General       .  172 


M 


MACCLESFIELD,  LORD          .         .  409 

Maestricht 39 

Malortie,  Marshal  von          .         .     89 
Mannheim  .         .         .         .98 

Marlortie,  Herr  and  Madame       .  396 
Marriage    settlement    and     con- 
tract   of    Sophie    Dorothea 
and  George  Louis         .         .     55 
Mary,  Princess  of  York        .         .     38 
Matilda,  daughter  of  Henry  II.   .       i 
Maximilian,  Prince  of  Hanover  .     77 

—  intrigues  of  .         .         -78 
Meissenbug,    Count   Carl   Philip 

von        .         .         .         .  30 

—  Catherine  Marie  von        .         .     30 

—  married  to  Bussche          .         -31 

—  Clara  Elizabeth  von         .         .     30 

—  married  to  Platen    .         .         .     31 

Milan 3 

Moltke  conspiracy       .         .         .  156 

—  execution  of    .         .         .         .  174 

Monplaisir 67 

Mons,  siege  and  fall  of        .         .  113 
Morea,  the  campaign  in       .         .  106 


450 


INDEX 


N 

NAM\;R,  siege  and  fall  of     .         .  172 

Naples 72 

Neerwinden,  battle  of.         .         .  316 
Northumberland, Dowager-Coun- 
tess of 84 


O 

OGLE,  COUNTESS  OF    . 
Osnabriick  . 

—  Court  of 

Otho  William,  Count  . 

—  death  of 


PALMBLAD,  PROFESSOR  .  .  121 
Passion,  the  dawn  of  .  .  .  139 
Phillipsburg,  siege  of  .  .  -25 
Platen,  Countess  .  .  .31 

—  marriage  of     .         .         .         -31 

—  opposed  to  Eleonore        .         .     33 

—  mistress  of  Ernest  Augustus   .     32 
—  jealousy  of  .         .         .68 

—  the  power  of  .         .         .         -7° 

—  and  Konigsmarck   .         .         .90 

—  illness  of         ....  391 

—  retirement  to  Monplaisir          .  400 

—  death  of 414 

Playing  with  fire .         .         .         -94 
Podevils,  Marshal        .         .         .  249 
Poellnitz  (historian)     .         .         -91 
Poley,  envoy  to  Celle  .         .         .  413 
Portsmouth,  Duchess  of  -3° 

Primogeniture,  establishment  of  .     77 

—  opposition  to  .          .         .          -78 
Prisoner  of  Ahlden       .         .         .  388 
Prussia,    Queen    of,    correspon- 
dence with  Sophie  Dorothea  425 

—  marriage  scheme  of         .         .  429 
Pyrmont 19 

Q 

QUEROUAILLE,  LOUISE  DE  .  .       30 


R 


RAMEL,  BARON  HANS  .         .         .  120 

Ratze,  Marie        ....  398 

Ratzeburg 258 

Reference,  books  of  .         .  445 

Retribution 437 


PAGE 

Reuss,  Comte  de  .  .  .11 
—  Countess  de  .  .  .  .11 
Rhine,  campaign  on  the  .  .  39 
Roman  Octavia  ....  417 
Roohlitz,  Countess  von  .  .  329 
Royal  mistresses  .  .  .331 

Rudolph    Augustifs  of   Wolfen- 

biittel 21 

Rupert,  Prince  .  .  .  -36 
Ryswick,  Peace  of  ...  100 


SACRIFICE  of  Sophie  Dorothea  .  47 
Sandys,  Dr.  ....  410 
Saxe,  Marshal  de  369 

Saxony,  Augustus,  Elector  of  .  329 
Schaumann  ....  373 
Schulenburg,  Ermengarda  Melu- 

sina  von        .         •         .         -78 

—  nickname  of    .         .         .         -79 

—  Duchess  of  Kendal          .         .  426 
Schulenburg-Klosterrode,    Count  122 
Sophia,  Princess  of  Bohemia       .       3 

—  betrothed  to  George  William       5 

—  betrothed  to  Ernest  Augustus        6 

—  married  to  Ernest  Augustus    .       6 

—  Electress   of   Hanover,  gene- 

alogy of  .         .         .     17 . 

—  moral  character       .         .         -34 

—  and  Madame  Platen        .         .     34 

—  and  the  throne  of  England      .     36 

—  at  Celle 46 

—  death  of .         .         .         .         .  420 

—  Charlotte,  Princess  of  Hanover     69 

—  Electress  of  Brandenburg        .     69 
Sophie  Dorothea  of  Celle,  gene- 
alogy of  .         .         .1 

—  birth  of  .         .         .         .         .13 

—  legitimised       .         .         .         .19 

—  betrothed  to  Augustus  Fred- 

erick of  Wolfenbiittel   .         .     22 

—  betrothed  to  George  Louis  of 

Hanover        .         .         .         •     49 

—  disposition  of          ...     54 

—  married     to     George     Louis 

(George  I.)   .         .        .         .58 

—  entry  into  Hanover          .         .     59 

—  birth  of  George  Augustus        .     65 

—  and  Madame  Platen        ..        .     66 

—  and  Marquis  de  Lassaye          .     72 

—  birth     of     Sophie      Dorothea 

(Queen  of  Prussia)        .        .     74 

—  correspondence  with   Konigs- 

marck   174 


INDEX 


45' 


Sophie     Dorothea's     arrival 
Ahlden 

—  divorce  of        ... 

—  prisoner  at  Ahlden  . 

—  petitions  of 

—  return  to  Celle 

—  return  to  Ahlden 

—  literary  labours 

—  correspondence  with  Queen 

Prussia 

—  death  of . 

—  burial  of. 

—  curse  of  . 

St.  Denis     .... 
Steinkirk,  battle  of 
Stepney,  envoy  at  Dresden 
Stern,  Lieutenant 


THYNNE,  THOMAS 
—  murder  of 
Toland  (historian) 
Treves,  siege  of  . 


PAGE 

at 

V 

.  362 

VENICE        .... 

•  371 

Verona,  siege  of  . 

•  392 

Victoria,  Queen  . 

.    401 

•  4°7 

Vratz,  Captain     . 

•  4°7 

W 

•  424 
of 

WESTPHALIA,  TREATY  OF  . 

•  425 

Weyhe,  General  . 

•  43^ 

Wienhausen 

•  439 

Wiesbaden  .... 

•  44° 

Wilhelmsburg 

39 

—  Countess  of    . 

.  204 

William  of  Orange 

•  329 

—  and  the  throne  of  England 

.     86 

—  and  the  Prince  of  Wales 

Wisdom  of  serpents     . 

Witgenstein,  Count     . 

•     85 

Y 

.     86 

YORK,  PRINCESS  MARY  OF  . 

.  410 

—  Princess  Anne  of    . 

•     39 

—  Duke  of  . 

70 
88 

37 
86 


79 

152 

217 

19 

19 

40 

100 

409 

25 
366 


40 
38 
38 


THE    ABERDEEN    UNIVERSITY    PRESS    LIMITED. 


H  Classified    Catalogue 

OF  WORKS  IN 

GENERAL    LITERATURE 

PUBLISHED   BY 

LONGMANS,  GREEN,  &  CO. 

39    PATERNOSTER   ROW,    LONDON,    E.G. 

91  AND  93  FIFTH  AVENUE,  NEW  YORK,  AND  32  HORNBY  ROAD,  BOMBAY 

CONTENTS. 


PAGE 
12 


BADMINTON  LIBRARY  (THE). 
BIOGRAPHY,        PERSONAL        ME- 
MOIRS,  &c. g 

CHILDREN'S  BOOKS                   -        -     32 
CLASSICAL  LITERATURE,  TRANS- 
LATIONS, ETC.                                   -     22 
COOKERY,     DOMESTIC     MANAGE- 
MENT, &c. 36 

EVOLUTION,        ANTHROPOLOGY, 

&c. 21 

FICTION,  HUMOUR,  &c.   -  -     25 

FINE  ARTS  (THE)  AND  MUSIC      -     36 
FUR,  FEATHER  AND  FIN  SERIES     15 


MENTAL,  MORAL,  AND  POLITICAL 
PHILOSOPHY 

MISCELLANEOUS  AND  CRITICAL 
WORKS 

POETRY  AND  THE  DRAMA     - 

POLITICAL   ECONOMY   AND  ECO- 
NOMICS      

POPULAR  SCIENCE  - 
RELIGION,  THE  SCIENCE  OF 
SILVER  LIBRARY  (THE) 
SPORT  AND  PASTIME       -        -         - 
PHILOSOPHICAL 


LANGUAGE,    HISTORY   AND 

SCIENCE  OF 20 

LOGIC,  RHETORIC,  PSYCHOLOGY, 

&c. 17 


38 
23 

20 

3° 
21 

33 

12 
19 

TRAVEL   AND   ADVENTURE,  THE 
COLONIES,  &c.         -        -        -        -     ii 


WORKS  OF  REFERENCE  - 


31 


INDEX 

OF    AUTHORS    AND     EDITORS. 

Page 

Page                                         Page 

Page 

Abbott  (Evelyn)      3, 

19,  22 

Balfour  (A.  J.)           -  13,  21     Burke  (U.  R.)  -        -          3    Crozier  (I.  B.)  - 

9.  17 

(J.  H.  M.) 

3 

Ball  (John)       -        -        n     Burne-Jones  (Sir  E.)        36    Cutts  (Rev.  E.  L.)    - 

6 

(T.  K.)      -        - 

17,18 

Banks  (M.  M.)  -        -        24    Burns  (C.  L.)   -        -        36    Dabney  (J.  P.)  - 

23 

(E.  A.)      -        - 

17 

Baring-Gould(Rev.S.)2i,38    Burrows  (Montagu)            6    Dale  (L.)  ... 

4 

Acland  (A.  H.  D.)     - 

3 

Barnett(S.  A.andH.)       20    Butler  (E.  A.)  -        -        30  '  Dallinger  (F.  W.)     - 

5 

Acton  (Eliza)   - 

36 

Baynes  (T.  S.)  -        -        38    Campbell  (Rev.  Lewis)    21     Dauglish  (M.  G.)      - 

9 

Adelborg  (O.)   - 

32 

Beaconsfield  (Earl  of)      25    Casserly  (G.)    -        -          3    Davenport  (A.) 

25 

jEschylus 

22 

Beaufort  (Duke  of)i2,  13,  14    Chesney  (Sir  G.)      -          3 

Davidson  (A.  M.  C.) 

22 

Albemarle  (Earl  of)  - 

13 

Becker  (W.  A.)         -        22    Childe-Pemberton(W.S.)  9 

—  (W.  L.)     -      17, 

20,  21 

Alcock  (C.  W.) 

15 

Beesly  (A.  H.)  -        -          9    Chisholm  (G.  C  )     -        31 

Davies  (J.  F.)   - 

22 

Allen  (Grant)    - 

30 

Bell  (Mrs.  Hugh)      -        23    Cholmondeley-Pennell 

Dent  (C.  T.)     - 

14 

Allgood  (G.)      - 

3 

Bent  (J.  Theodore)  -        n        (H.)        -        -        -        13 

De  Salis  (Mrs.) 

36 

Alverstone  (Lord)    - 

15 

Besant  (Sir  Walter)-          3    Christie  (R.  C.)         -        38 

De  Tocqueville  (A.)  - 

4 

Angwin  (M.  C.) 

36 

Bickerdyke  (J.)          -  14,  15 

Churchill  (Winston  S.)  4,  25 

Devas  (C.  S.)    - 

19,  20 

Anstey  (F.) 

25 

Bird  (G.)                            23 

Cicero       -        -        -        22 

Dewey  (D.  R.)  - 

2O 

Aristophanes    - 

22 

Blackburne  (J.  H.)   -        15 

Clarke  (Rev.  R.  F.)  -        19 

Dickinson  (W.  H.)  - 

38 

Aristotle   - 

I/ 

Bland  (Mrs.  Hubert)         24 

Climenson  (E.  J.)     -        10 

Dougall  (L.)      - 

25 

Arnold  (Sir  Edwin)  - 

11,23 

Blount  (Sir  E/>         -          9 

Clodd  (Edward)        -  21,30 

Dowden  (E.)     - 

40 

(Dr.  T.)     -        - 

3 

Boase  (Rev.  C.  W.)  -          6 

Clutterbuck  (W.  J.)-        12 

Doyle  (Sir  A.  Conan) 

25 

Ashbourne  (Lord)     - 

3 

Boedder  (Rev.  B.)    -        19 

Cochrane  (A.)  -        -        23 

Du  Bois  (W.  E.  B.)- 

5 

Ashby  (H.) 

36 

Bonnell  (H.  H.)        -        38 

Cockerell  (C.  R.)      -        ii     Dunbar  (Mary  F.)    - 

25 

Ashley  (W.  J.)  - 

3,  20 

Booth  (A.  J.)    -        -        38 

Colenso  (R.  J.)          -        36    Dyson  (E.) 

26 

Atkinson  (J.  J.) 

21 

Bottome  (P.)    -        -        25 

Conington  (John)    -        23    Ellis  (J.  H.)      - 

15 

Avebury  (Lord) 

21 

Bowen  (W.  E.)        -          9 

Conybeare  (Rev.  W.  J  .) 

(R.  L.)       -        - 

'7 

Ayre  (Rev.  J.)  - 

31 

Brassey  (Lady)          -        ii 

&  Howson  (Dean)         33 

Erasmus  -        -        - 

Bacon        - 

9,17 

Bright  (Rev.  J.  F.)  -          3 

Coolidge  (W.  A.  B.)         ii 

Evans  (Sir  John)     - 

38 

Bagehot  (W.)  -       g, 

20,38 

Broadfoot  (Major  W.)     13 

Corbett  (Julian  S.)  -          4 

Falkiner  (C.  L.) 

4 

Bagwell  (R.)     - 

3 

Brooks  (H.  J.)  -       -        17 

Coutts  (W.)      -        -         22     Farrar  (Dean)   - 

20,  26 

Bailey  (H.  C.)  - 

25 

Brough  (J.)       -        -        17 

Cox  (Harding)          -        13    Fitzmaurice  (Lord  E.)       4 

Baillie  (A.  F.)  - 

3 

Brown  (A.  F.)  -         -         32 

Crake  (Rev.  A.  D.)   -        32    Folkard  (H.  C.) 

15 

Bain  (Alexander) 

17 

Bruce  (R.  I.)     -        -          3 

Crawford  (J.  H.)       -        25    Ford  (H.)  - 

16 

Baker  (J.  H.)    - 

38 

Buckland  (Jas.)         -        32 

Creed  (S.)         -        -        25    Fountain  (P 

ii 

(Sir  S.  W.) 

II,  12 

Buckle  (H.  T.)  -        -          3 

Creiehton  (Bishop)  -4,  6,  9    Fowler  (Edith  H.)    - 

26 

Baldwin  (C.  S.) 

17 

Bull(T.)    ...        36 

Cross  (A.  L.)                       5    Francis  (Francis) 

16 

INDEX     OF     AUTHORS     AND     EDITORS-*emfc»»«*. 


Page 

Page 

Page 

Page 

Francis  (M.  E.)         -        26 

Jerome  (Jerome  K.)  -       27 

Nansen  (F.)      -        -        12 

Stanley  (Bishop)      -        31 

Freeman  (Edward  A.)         6 

Johnson  (J.  &  J.  H.)         39 

Nash(V.)-        -        -          7 

Stebbing  (W.)  -        -        28 

Fremantle  (T.  F.)     -        16 

ones  (H.  Bence)     -       31 

Nesbit  (E.)        -        -        24 

Steel  (A.  G.)     -       -        13 

Frost  (G.)-        -        -        38 

'  oyce  (P.  W.)   -      6,  27,  39 

Nettleship  (R.  L.)    -        17 

Stephen  (Leslie)       -        12 

Froude  (Jarnes  A.)  4,9,11,26    Justinian-        -        -        18 

Newman  (Cardinal)  -        28 

Stephens  (H.  Morse)          8 

Fuller  (F.  W.)  -        -          5     Kant  (I.)    -                -        18 

Nichols  (F.  M.)         -          9 

Sternberg       (Count 

Furneaux  (W.)          -        30    Kaye  (Sir  I.  W.)       -          6 

Oakesmith  (J.)                   22 

Adalbert)   -        -          8 

Gardiner  (Samuel  R.)         5    Keary  (C.  F.j    -        -        23 

Ogilvie  (R.)      -        -        22 

Stevens  (R.  W.)       -        40 

Gathorne-Hardy(Hon.           Kelly  (E.)-       -       -        18 

Oldfield  (Hon.  Mrs.)          9 

Stevenson  (R.  L.)  25,28,33 

A.  E.)         -        -  15,  16    Kielmansegge  (F.)    -          9 

Osbourne  (L.)  -        -        28 

Storr  (F.)                            17 

Geikie  (Rev.  Cunning-            Killick  (Rev.  A.  H.)  -        18 

Packard  (A.  S.)         -        21 

Stuart-  Wortley(A.J.)  14,  15 

ham)      -        -        -        38    Kitchin  (Dr.  G.  W.)           6 

Paget  (Sir  J.)   -        -        10 

Stubbs  (J.  W.)  -        -          8 

Gibson  (C.  H.)-        -        17  !  Knight  (E.  F.)  -        -11,14 

Park(W.)          -        -        16 

(W.)-        -        -          8 

Gilkes  (A.  H.)  -        -        38    Kostlin  (J.)        -        -        10 

Parker  (B.)        -        -        40 

Suffolk  &  Berkshire 

Gleig  (Rev.  G.  R.)   -        10 

Kristeller  (P.)   -        -        37 

Payne-Gallwey  (Sir  R.)  14,16 

(Earloi)     -        -        14 

Graham  (A.)     -        -         5 

Ladd  (G.  T.)     -        -        18 

Pears  (E.)         -        -          7 

Sullivan  (Sir  E.)       -        14 

(P.  A.)       -        -  15,  16    Lang  (Andrew)  6  ,13,  14,  16, 

Pearse  (H.  H.  S.)     -          6 

Sully  (James)    -        -        19 

(G.  F.)       -        -        20 

21,22,  23,  27,  32,39 

Peek  (Hedley)  -        -        14 

Sutherland  (A.  and  G.)        8 

Granby  (Marquess  of)      15 

Lapsley  (G.  T.)        -         5 

Pemberton    (W.    S. 

(Alex.)       -        -  19,  40 

Grant  (Sir  A.)  -        -        17    Laurie  (S.  S.)   -        -          6 

Childe-)          -        -          9 

Suttner  (B.  von)       -        29 

Graves  (R.  P.)  -        -          9 

Lawrence  (F.  W.)    -        20 

Penrose  (H.  H.)       -        33 

Swinburne  (A.  J.)     -        19 

(A.  F.)       -        -       .23    Lear  (H.  L.  Sidney)-        36 

Phillipps-WolleyfC.)  12,28 

Symes  (J.  E.)    -        -        20 

Green  (T.  Hill)         -  17,  18    Lecky  (W.  E.  H.)   6,  18,  23 

Pierce  (A.  H.)  -       -        19 

Tait(J.)    ...          7 

Greene  (E.  B.)-        -          5  :  Lees  (J.  A.)       -        -        12 

Pole  (W.)  -        -        -        17 

Tallentyre  (S.  G.)     -        10 

Greville  (C.  C.  F.)    -          5    Leighton  (J.  A.)        -        21 

Pollock  (W.  H.)  -        13,  40 

Tappan  (E.  M.)         -        33 

Grose  (T.  H.)  -        -        18 

Leslie  (T.  E.  Chffe)  -        20 

Poole(W.H.andMrs.)     36 

Taylor  (Col.  Meadows)      8 

Gross  (C.)         -        -          5 

Lieven  (Princess)     -          6 

Poore  (G.  V.)    -        -        40 

Theophrastus  -        -        23 

Grove  (Lady)    -        -        ii 

Lillie  (A.)-        -        -        16 

Portman  (L.)     -        -        28 

Thomas  (J.  W.)        -        19 

(Mrs.  Lilly)       -        13 

Lindley  (J.)       -        -        31 

Powell  (E.)       -        -          7 

Thomson  (H.  C.)     -          8 

Gurnhill  (J.)     -        -        18 

Locock  (C.  D.)          -        16 

Powys  (Mrs.  P.  L.)  -        10 

Thornhill  (W.  J.)      -        23 

Gwilt  (J.)  -        -        -        31 

Lodge  (H.  C.)  -        -          6 

Praeger  (S.  Rosamond)    33 

Thornton  (T.  H.)     -        10 

Haggard  (H.  Rider) 

Loftie  (Rev.  W.  J.)  -         6 

Pritchett  (R.  T.)       -        14 

Thuillier  (H.  F.)       -        40 

ii,  26,  27,  38 

Longman  (C.  J.)       -  12,  16 

Proctor  (R.  A.)       16,  30,  35 

Todd(A.)-        -        -          8 

Halliwell-Phillipps(J.)     10 

(F.  W.)      -        -        16 

Raine  (Rev.  James)  -          6 

Tout  (T.  F.)      -        -          7 

Hamilton  (Col.  H.  B.)       5 

(G.  H.)      -        -13,15 

Ramal  (W.)       -        -        24 

Toynbee  (A.)     -        -        20 

Hamlin  (A.  D.  F.)    -        36 

(Mrs.  C.  J.)       -        37 

Randolph  (C.  F.)      -          7 

Trevelyan  (Sir  G.  O.) 

Harding  (S.  B.)         -          5 

Lowell  (A.  L.)  -        -          6 

Rankin  (R.)       -        -    8,  25 

6,  7,  8,  9,  10 

Hardwick  (A.  A.)      -        ii 

Lucian      -        -        -        22 

Ransome  (Cyril)       -      3,  8 

(G.  M.)      -        -      7,  8 

Harmsworth  (A.  C.)    13,  14 

Lutoslawski  (W.)     -        18 

Reid  (S.  J.)                         9 

(R.  C.)      -        -        25 

Harte  (Bret)      -        -        27 

Lyall  (Edna)     -        -  27,  32 

Rhoades  (J.)     -        -        23 

Trollope  (Anthony)-       29 

Harting(J.E.)-        -        15 

Lynch  (G.)        -        -          6 

Rice  (S.  P.)       -        -        12 

Turner  (ri.  G.)          -        40 

Hartwig  (G.)     -        -        30 

(H.  F.  B.)-        -        12 

Rich  (A.)  -        -        -        23 

Tyndall  (J.)       -        -    9,  12 

Hassall(A.)       -        -          8 

Lytton  (Earl  of)       -        24 

Richmond  (Ennis)    -        19 

Tyrrell  (R.  Y.)  -        -  22,  23 

Haweis  (H.  R.)         -    9,  36 

Macaulay  (Lord)  6,7,10,24 

Rickaby  (Rev.  John)         19 

Unwin  (R.)       -        -        40 

Head  (Mrs.)      -        -        37 

Macdonald  (Dr.  G.)  -        24 

—  (Rev.  Joseph)    -        19 

Upton(F.K.and  Bertha)    33 

Heath  (D.  D.)  -       -        17 

Macfarren  (Sir  G.  A.)        37 

Riley(J.  W.)     -        -        24 

Van  Dyke  (J.  C.)      -        37 

Heathcote  (J.  M.)     -        14 

Mackail  (J.  W.)        -  10,  23 

Roberts  (E.  P.)         -        33 

Vanderpoel  (E.  N.)  -        37 

(C.  G.)       -        -        14 

Mackenzie  (C.  G.)    -        16 

Robertson  (W.  G.)  -        37 

Virgil        -        -        -        23 

(N.)            -        -        ii 

Mackinnon  (J.)          -          7 

Roget  (Peter  M.)      -  20,  31 

Wagner  (R.)     -        -        25 

Helmholtz  (Hermann 

Macleod  (H.  D.)        -        20 

Romanes  (G.  J.)  10,  19,21,24 

Wakeman  (H.  O.)     -          8 

von)    -        -        -        30 

Macpherson  (Rev.H.A.)  15 

(Mrs.  G.  J.)       -        10 

Walford  (L.  B.)        -        29 

Henderson      (Lieut- 

Madden  (D.  H.)        -        16 

Ronalds  (A.)     -        -        17 

Wallas  (Graham)     -        10 

Col.  G.  F.  R.)  -          9 

Magniisson  (E.)        -        28 

Roosevelt  (T.)  -        -          6 

—  (Mrs.  Graham)-        32 

Henry  (W.)       -        -        14 

Maher  (Rev.  M.)       -        19 

Ross  (Martin)  -        -        28 

Walpole  (Sir  Spencer)  8,  10 

Henty  (G.  A.)  -        -        32    Mallet  (B.)        -        -          7 

Rossetti  (Maria  Fran- 

(Horace)   -       -        10 

Higgins  (Mrs.  N.)    -          9  ;  Malleson  (Col.  G.  B.)          6 

cesca)     -        -        -        40 

Walrond  (Col.  H.)    -        12 

Hill  (Mabel)     -        -          5  I  Marbot  (Baron  de)  -        10 

Rotheram  (M.  A.)    -        36 

Walsingham  (Lord)  -        14 

(S.  C.)       -        -.         5 

Marchment  (A.  W.)         27 

Rowe  (R.  P.  P.)        -        14 

Ward  (Mrs.  W.)       -        29 

Hillier  (G.  Lacy)      -        13 

Marshman  (J.  C.)     -          9 

Russell  (Lady)-        -        10 

Warner  (P.  F.)          -         17 

Hime  (H.  W.  L.)      -       22 

Maryon  (M.)                     39 

Sandars  (T.  C.)         -        18 

Warwick  (Countess  of)    40 

Hodgson  (Shadworth)       18 

Mason  (A.  E.  W.)    -        27 

Sanders  (E.  K.)                   9 

Watson  (A.  E.  T.)  12,  13,  14 

Hoenig(F.)      -        -        38 

Maskelyne  (J.  N.)     -        16 

Savage-  Armstrong(G.F.)25 

Weathers  (J.)   -        -        40 

Hogan  (J.  F.)    -        -          9 

Matthews  (B.)          -        39 

Seebohm  (F.)    -        -    8,  10 

Webb  (Mr.  and  Mrs. 

Holmes  (R.  R.)        -        10 

Maunder  (S.)    -        -        31 

Selous  (F.  C.)  -        -  12,  17 

Sidney)       -        -        20 

Homer      -        -        -        22 

Max  Miiller  (F.) 

Senior  (W.)      -        -  13,  15 

(Judge  T.)         -        40 

Hope  (Anthony)       -        27 

10,  18,  20,  21,  22,  27,  39 

Seton-Karr  (Sir  H.)  -          8 

(T.  E.)       -        -        19 

Horace     -        -        -        22 

May  (SirT.  Erskine)          7 

Sewell  (Elizabeth  M.)       28 

Weber  (A.)       -        -        19 

i  louston  (D.  F.)       -          5 

Meade  (L.  T.)  -        -        32 

Shadwell  (A.)    -        -        40 

Weir  (Capt.  R.)         -        14 

Howard  (Lady  Mabel)     27 

Melville  (G.J.Whyte)      27 

Shakespeare     -        -        25 

Wellington  (Duchess  of)  37 

Howitt(W.)     -        -        ii 

Merivale  (Dean)       -          7 

Shaw  (W.  A.)   -        -          8 

Wemyss  (M.  C.  E.)-        33 

Hudson  (W.  H.)       -        30 

Mernman  ^H.  S.)      -        27 

Shearman  (M.)          -  12,  13 

Weyman  (Stanley)  -        29 

Huish  (M.  B.)  -        -        37 

Mill  (John  Stuart)    -  18,  20 

Sheehan  (P.  A.)        -        28 

Whately(Archbishop)  17,19 

Hullah(J.)        -        -        37 

Millais  (J.  G.)  -        -  16,  30 

Sheppard  (E.)  -        -          8 

Whitelaw  (R.)  -        -        23 

Hume  (David)  -        -        18 

Milner  (G.)        -        -        40 

Sinclair  (A.)      -        -        14 

Whittall(SirJ.  W.  )-        40 

(M.  A.  S.)         -          3 

Monck(W.  H.  S.)    -        19 

Skrine  (F.  H.)  -        -          9 

Wilkins(G.)     -        -        23 

Hunt  (Rev.  W.)        -          6 

Montague  (F.  C.)     -          7 

Smith  (C.  Fell)         -        10 

(W.  H.)     -        -        10 

Hunter  (Sir  W.)      -         6 

Moore  (T.)        -        -        31 

(R.  Bosworth)  -          8 

Willard  (A.  R.)         -        37 

Hutchinson  (Horace  G.) 

(Rev.  Edward)  -        17 

(T.  C.)       -        -          5 

Willich  (C.  M.)         -        31 

13,  16,  27,  38 

Moran  (T.  F.)  -        -          7 

(W.  P.  Haskett)        12 

Wood  (Rev.  J.  G.)    -        31 

Ingelow  (Jean)          -        23 

Morgan  (C.  Lloyd)  -        21 

Somerville  (E.)         -        28    Wood-Martin  (W.  G.)     22 

Ingram  (T.  D.)         -          6 

Morris  (W.)      -    22,  23,  24, 

Sophocles          -        -        23    Wyatt  (A.  J.)    -        -        24 

James  (W.)       -       -  18,  21 

27,  28,  37,  40 

Soulsby  (Lucy  H.)    -        40    Wylie  (J.  H.)    -        -          8 

Jameson  (Mrs.  Anna)       37 

Mulhall  (M.  G.)        -        20 

Southey  (R.)     -        -        40    Yeats  (S.  Levett)     -        29 

Jefferies  (Richard)    -        38 

Murray  (Hilda)         -        33 

Spedding  (J.)    -       -   9,  17    Yoxall  (T.  H.)  -       -       29 

Jekyll  (Gertrude)      -       38 

Myers  (F.  W.  H.)     -        19 

Spender  (A.  E.)        -        12    Zeller  (E.)         -       -        19 

MESSRS.  LONGMANS  &  CO.'S  STANDARD  AND  GENERAL  WORKS. 


History,  Politics,  Polity,  Political  Memoirs,  &c. 


Abbott. — A  HISTORY  OF  GREECE. 
By  EVELYN  ABBOTT,  M.A.,  LL.D. 

Part  I. — From  the  Earliest  Times  to  the 
Ionian  Revolt.  Crown  8vo.,  ios.  6d. 

Part  II. — 500-445  B.C.     Crown  8vo.,  ios.  6d. 

Part  III. — From  the  Peace  of  445  B.C.  to 
the  Fall  of  ^he  Thirty  at  Athens  in  403 
B.C.  Crown  8vo.,  ios.  6d. 

Abbott. — TOMMY  CORNSTALK  :  being 
Some  Account  of  the  Less  Notable 
Features  of  the  South  African  War  from 
the  Point  of  View  of  the  Australian  Ranks. 
By  J.  H.  M.  ABBOTT.  Crown  8vo.,  55.  net. 

Acland  and  Ransome. — A  HAND- 
BOOK IN  OUTLINE  OF  THE  POLITICAL  HIS- 
TORY OF  ENGLAND  TO  1896.  Chronologically 
Arranged.  By  the  Right  Hon.  A.  H.  DYKE 
ACLAND,  and  CYRIL  RANSOME,  M.A.  Crown 
8vo.,  6s. 

Allgood.  —  CHINA  WAR,  1860  : 
LETTERS  AND  JOURNALS.  By  Major- 
General  G.  ALLGOOD,  C.B.,  formerly  Lieut. 
G.  ALLGOOD,  ist  Division  China  Field 
Force.  With  Maps,  Plans,  and  Illustra- 
tions. Demy  4to.  12$.  6d.  net. 

Annual  Register  (The).    A  Review 

of  Public  Events  at  Home  and  Abroad,  for 
the  year  1902.     8vo.,  i8s. 

Volumes  of  the  ANNUAL  REGISTER  ior  the 
years  1863-1901  can  still  be  had.  185.  each. 

Arnold. — INTRODUCTORY  LECTURES 
Off  MODERN  HISTORY.  By  THOMAS  AR- 
NOLD, D.D.,  formerly  Head  Master  of  Rugby 
School.  8vo.,  75.  6d. 

Ashbourne. — PITT  :  SOME  CHAPTERS 
ON  His  LIFE  AND  TIMES.  By  the  Right 
Hon.  EDWARD  GIBSON,  LORD  ASHBOURNE, 
Lord  Chancellor  of  Ireland.  With  n  Por- 
traits. 8vo.,  gilt  top,  2is. 

Ashley  (W.  J.). 

ENGLISH  ECONOMIC  HISTORY  AND 
THEORY.  Crown  8vo.,  Part  I.,  55.  Part 
II.,  ios.  6d. 

SURVEYS,  HISTORIC  AND  ECONOMIC. 
Crown  8vo.,  95.  net. 

Bagwell. — IRELAND  UNDER  THE 
TltDORS.  By  RICHARD  BAGWELL,  LL.D. 
(3  vols.)  Vols.  I.  and  II.  From  the  first 
invasion  of  the  Northmen  to  the  year  1578. 
8vo.,  32s.  Vol.  III.  1578-1603.  8vo.,  i8s. 


Baillie. — THE  ORIENTAL  CLUB,  AND 
HANOVER  SQUARE.  By  ALEXANDER  F. 
BAILLIE.  With  6  Photogravure  Portraits 
and  8  Full-page  Illustrations.  Crown  410., 
255.  net. 

Besant. — THE  HISTORY  OF  LONDON. 
By  Sir  WALTER  BESANT.  With  74  Illus- 
trations. Crown  8vo.,  is.  gd.  Or  bound 
as  a  School  Prize  Book,  gilt  edges,  2s.  6d. 

Bright. — A   HISTORY  OF  ENGLAND. 
By  the  Rev.  J.  FRANCK  BRIGHT,  D.  D. 
Period    I.     MEDIMVAL  MONARCHY:    A.D. 

449-1485.     Crown  8vo.,  45.  6d. 
Period  II.     PERSONAL  MONARCHY.     1485- 

1688.     Crown  8vo.,  55. 

Period  III.     CONSTITUTIONAL  MONARCHY. 
1689-1837.     Crown  8vo.,  7$.  6d. 

Period  IV.     THE  GROWTH  OF  DEMOCRACY. 
1837-1880.     Crown  8vo.,  6s. 

Bruce. — THE  FORWARD  POLICY  AND 
ITS  RESULTS;  or,  Thirty-five  Years'  Work 
amongst  the  Tribes  on  our  North- Western 
Frontier  of  India.  By  RICHARD  ISAAC 
BRUCE,  C.I.E.  With  28  Illustrations  and 
a  Map.  8vo.,  155.  net. 

Buckle. — HISTORY  OF  CIVILISATION 
IN  ENGLAND.  By  HENRY  THOMAS  BUCKLE. 

Cabinet  Edition.     3  vols.     Crown  8vo.,  245. 
'  Silver  Library  '  Edition.     3  vols.     Crown 
8vo.,  ios.  6d. 

Burke. — A  HISTORY  OF  SPAIN, 
FROM  THE  EARLIEST  TIMES  TO  THE 
DEATH  OF  FERDINAND  THE  CATHOLIC. 
By  ULICK  RALPH  BURKE,  M.A.  Edited 
by  MARTIN  A.  S.  HUME.  With  6  Maps. 
2  vols.  Crown  8vo.,  i6s.  net. 

Caroline,  Queen. — CAROLINE  THE 
ILLUSTRIOUS,  QUEEN-CONSORT  OF  GEORGE 
II.  AND  SOMETIME  QUEEN  REGENT:  a 
Study  of  Her  Life  and  Time.  By  W.  H. 
WILKINS,  M.A.,  F.S.A.,  Author  of  'The 
Love  of  an  Uncrowned  Queen  '.  2  vols., 
8vo.,  3&s. 

Casserly.  —  THE  LAND  OF  THE 
BOXERS;  or,  China  under  the  Allies.  By 
Captain  GORDON  CASSERLY.  With  15 
Illustrations  and  a  Plan.  8vo.,  ios.  6d.  net. 

Chesney. — INDIAN  POLITY:  a  View  of 
the  System  of  Administration  in  India.  By 
General  Sir  GEORGE  CHESNEY,  K.C.B. 
With  Map  showing  all  the  Administrative 
Divisions  of  British  India.  8vo.,  2is. 


MESSRS.  LONGMANS  &  CO.'S  STANDARD  AND  GENERAL  WORKS. 


History,  Polities,  Polity,  Political  Memoirs,  &c. — continued. 


Churchill  (WINSTON  SPENCER,  M.P.).    Fitzmaurice.  —  CHARLES    WILLIAM 

FERDINAND,  DUKE   OF  BRUNSWICK:   an 
Historical     Study.       By     Lord     EDMUND 
FITZMAURICE. 
8vo.,  6s.  net. 


THE  RIVER  WAR  :  an  Historical 
Account  of  the  Reconquest  of  the  Soudan. 
Edited  by  Colonel  F.  RHODES,  D.S.O. 
With  Photogravure  Portrait  of  Viscount 
Kitchener  of  Khartoum,  and  22  Maps  and 
Plans.  8vo.,  105.  6d.  net. 


With  Map  and  2  Portraits. 


THE  STORY  OF  THE  MALAKAND 
FIELD  FORCE,  1897.  With  6  Maps  and 
Plans.  Crown  8vo.,  35.  6d. 

LONDON  TOLADYSMITH  VI&PRE  TORI  A  . 

Crown  8vo.,  6s. 

I  A  N  HAMILTON'S  MARCH.  With 
Portrait  of  Major-General  Sir  Ian 
Hamilton,  and  10  Maps  and  Plans. 
Crown  8vo.,  6s. 


Corbett  (JULIAN  S.). 


DRAKE  AND  THE  TUDOR  NAVY, 
with  a  History  of  the  Rise  of  England 
as  a  Maritime  Power.  With  Portraits, 

•  Illustrations  and  Maps.  2  vols.  Crown 
8vo.,  i6s. 

THE  SUCCESSORS  OF  DRAKE.  With 
4  Portraits  (2  Photogravures)  and  12 
Maps  and  Plans.  8vo.,  2is. 

Creighton    (M.,    D.D.,    Late    Lord 

Bishop  of  London). 

A  HISTORY  OF  THE  PAPACY  FROM 
THE  GREAT  SCHISM  TO  THE  SACK  OF 
ROME,  1378-1527.  6  vols.  Cr.  8vo., 
55.  net  each. 

QUEEN  ELIZABETH.  With  Portrait. 
Crown  8vo.,  55.  net. 

HISTORICAL  ESSAYS  AND  REVIEWS. 
Edited  by  LOUISE  CREIGHTON.  Crown 
8vo.,  55.  net. 

Dale. —  THE  PRINCIPLES  OF  ENGLISH 
CONSTITUTIONAL  HISTORY.  By  LUCY 
DALE,  late  Scholar  of  Somerville  College, 
Oxford.  Crown  8vo. ,  6s. 

De  Tocqueville.— DEMOCRACY  IN 
AMERICA.  By  ALEXIS  DE  TOCQUEVILLE. 
Translated  by  HENRY  REEVE,  C.B.,  D.C.L. 
2  vols.  Crown  8vo.,  i6s. 

Falkiner.— STUDIES  IN  IRISH  HIS- 
TORY AND  BIOGRAPHY,  Mainly  of  the 
Eighteenth  Century.  By  C.  LITTON 
FALKINER.  8vo.,  i2s.  6d.  net. 


Froude  (]AMES  A.). 

THE  HISTORY  OF  ENGLAND,  from  the 
Fall  of  Wolsey  to  the  Defeat  of  the 
Spanish  Armada.  12  vols.  Crown  8vo., 
35.  6d.  each. 

THE  DIVORCE  OF  CATHERINE  OF 
ARAGON.  Crown  8vo.,  35.  6d. 

THE  SPANISH  STORY  OF  THE  AR- 
MADA, and  other  Essays.  Cr.  8vo.,  35.  6d. 

THE  ENGLISH  IN  IRELAND  IN  THE 
EIGHTEENTH  CENTURY.  3  vols.   Cr.  8vo., 
i  os.  6d. 

ENGLISH  SEAMEN  IN  THE  SIXTEENTH 
CENTURY. 

Cabinet  Edition.     Crown  8vo.,  6s. 
Illustrated    Edition.       With    5     Photo- 
gravure Plates   and  16   other    Illustra- 
tions.    Large  Cr.  8vo.,  gilt  top,  6s.  net. 
'  Silver  Library  '  Edition.   Cr.  8vo.,  35.  6d . 

THE    COUNCIL  OF   TRENT.     Crown 

8vo.,  35.  6d. 

SHORT  STUDIES  ONGREA  T SUBJECTS. 
Cabinet  Edition.     4  vols.     245. 
'  Silver  Library  '  Edition.    4  vols.    Crown 
8vo.,  35.  6d.  each. 

CMSAR  :  a  Sketch.     Cr.  8vo,  35.  6d. 

SELECTIONS  FROM  THE  WRITINGS  OF 
JAMES  ANTHONY  FROUDE.  Edited  by 
P.  S.  ALLEN,  M.A.  Crown  8vo.,  35.  6d. 

Fuller. — EGYPT  AND  THE  HINTER- 
LAND. By  FREDERIC  W.  FULLER.  With 
Frontispiece  and  Map  of  Egypt  and  the 
Sudan.  Crown  8vo.,  6s.  net. 

Gardiner  (SAMUEL  RAWSON,  D.C.L., 
LL.D.). 

HISTORY  OF  ENGLAND,  from  the  Ac- 
cession of  James  I.  to  the  Outbreak  of  the 
Civil  War,  1603-1642.  With  7  Maps. 
10  vols.  Crown  8vo.,  5$.  net  each. 

A  HISTORY  OF  THE  GREAT  CIVIL 
WAR,  1642-1649.  With  54  Maps  and 
Plans.  4  vols.  Cr.  8vo.,  ss.  net  each. 


MESSRS.  LONGMANS  &  CO.'S  STANDARD  AND  GENERAL  WORKS. 


History,  Politics,  Polity,  Political  Memoirs,  &e. — continued. 


Gardiner  (SAMUEL  RAWSON,  D.C.L., 

LL.  D.) — continued. 

A  HISTORY  OF  THE  COMMONWEALTH 
AND  THE  PROTECTORATE.  1649-1656. 
4  vols.  Crown  8vo.,  5$.  net  each. 

THE  STUDENT'S  HISTORY  OF  ENG- 
LAND.    With  378  Illustrations.     Crown 
8vo.,  gilt  top,  125. 
Also  in  Three  Volumes,  price  45.  each. 

WHAT  GUNPOWDER  PLOT  WAS. 
With  8  Illustrations.  Crown  8vo.,  55. 

CROMWELL'S  PLACE  IN  HISTORY. 
Founded  on  Six  Lectures  delivered  in  the 
University  of  Oxford.  Cr.  8vo.,  35.  6d. 

OLIVER  CROMWELL.  With  Frontis- 
piece. Crown  8vo.,  55.  net. 

German  Empire  (The)  of  To-day : 

Outlines  of  its  Formation  and  Development. 
By  '  VERITAS'.  Crown  8vo.,  6s.  net. 

Graham. — ROMAN  AFRICA  :  an  Out- 
line of  the  History  of  the  Roman  Occupa- 
tion of  North  Africa,  based  chiefly  upon 
Inscriptions  and  Monumental  Remains  in 
that  Country.  By  ALEXANDER  GRAHAM, 
F.S.A.,  F.R.I.B.A.  With  30  reproductions 
of  Original  Drawings  by  the  Author,  and 
2  Maps.  8vo.,  i6s.  net. 

Greville. — A  JOURNAL  OF  THE  REIGNS 
OF  KING  GEORGE  IV.,  KING  WILLIAM  IV., 
AND  QUEEN  VICTORIA.  By  CHARLES  C.  F. 
GREVILLE,  formerly  Clerk  of  the  Council. 
8  vols.  Crown  8vo.,  35.  6d.  each. 

Gross. — THE  SOURCES  AND  LITERA- 
TURE OF  ENGLISH  HISTORY,  FROM  THE 
EARLIEST  TIMES  TO  ABOUT  1485.  By 
CHARLES  GROSS,  Ph.D.  8vo.,  i8s.  net. 

Hamilton. — HISTORICAL  RECORD  OP 
THE  ia,TH  (KLVG'S)  HUSSARS,  from  A.D.  1715 
to  A.D.  1900.  By  Colonel  HENRY  BLACK- 
BURNE  HAMILTON,  M.A.,  Christ  Church, 
Oxford ;  late  Commanding  the  Regiment. 
With  15  Coloured  Plates,  35  Portraits,  etc., 
in  Photogravure,  and  10  Maps  and  Plans. 
Crown  410.,  gilt  edges,  42^.  net. 

Hill. — LIBERTY  DOCUMENTS.      With 

Contemporary  Exposition  and  Critical  Com- 
ments drawn  from  various  Writers.  Selected 
and  Prepared  by  MABEL  HILL.  Edited  with 
an  Introduction  byALBERT  BUSHNELL  HART, 
Ph.D.  Large  Crown  8vo.,  js.  6d.  net. 


HARVARD  HISTORICAL  STUDIES. 

THE  SUPPRESSION  OF  THE  AFRICAN 
SLAVE  TRADE  TO  THE  UNITED  STATES  OF 
AMERICA,  1638-1870.  By  W.  E.  B.  Du 
Bois,  Ph.D.  8vo.,  75.  6d. 

THE  CONTEST  OVER  THE  RA  TIFICA  TON 
OF  THE  FEDERAL  CONSTITUTION  IN  MASSA- 
CHUSETTS. By  S.  B.  HARDING, A.M.  8vo.,6s. 

A  CRITICAL  STUDY  OF  NULLIFICATION 
IN  SOUTH  CAROLINA.  By  D.  F.  HOUSTON, 
A.M.  8vo.,  65. 

NOMINATIONS  FOR  ELECTIVE  OFFICE 
IN  THE  UNITED  STATES.  By  FREDERICK 
W.  DALLINGER,  A.M.  8vo.,  75.  6d. 

A  BIBLIOGRAPHY  OF  BRITISH  MUNI- 
CIPAL HISTORY,  INCLUDING  GILDS  AND 
PARLIAMENTARY  REPRESENTATION.  By 
CHARLES  GROSS,  Ph.D.  8vo.,  125. 

THE  LIBERTY  AND  FREE  SOIL  PARTIES 
IN  THE  NORTH  WEST.  By  THEODORE  C. 
SMITH,  Ph.D.  8vo,  75.  6d. 

THE  PROVINCIAL  GOVERNOR  IN  THE 
ENGLISH  COLONIES  OF  NORTH  AMERICA. 
By  EVARTS  BOUTELL  GREENE.  Svo.,  75.  6d. 

THE  COUNTY  PALA  TINE  OF  DURHAM: 
a  Study  in  Constitutional  History.  By  GAIL- 
LARD  THOMAS  LAPSLEY,  Ph.D.  8vo.,  IDS.  6d. 

THE  ANGLICAN  EPISCOPATE  AND  THE 
AMERICAN  COLONIES.  By  ARTHUR  LYON 
CROSS,  Ph.D.,  Instructor  in  History  in  the 
University  of  Michigan.  8vo.,  tos.  6d, 


Hill. —  THREE  FRENCHMEN  IN  BEN- 
GAL; or,  The  Loss  of  the  French  Settle- 
ments. By  S.  C.  HILL,  B.A.,  B.Sc.,  Officer 
in  charge  of  the  Records  of  the  Government 
of  India.  With  4  Maps.  Svo. 

Historic  Towns. — Edited  by  E.  A. 
FREEMAN,  D.C.L.,and  Rev.  WILLIAM  HUNT, 
M.A.  With  Maps  and  Plans.  Crown  8vo., 
35.  6d.  each. 


Bristol.   By  Rev.  W.  Hunt. 

Carlisle.  By  Mandell 
Creighton,  D.D. 

Cinque  Ports.  By  Mon- 
tagu Burrows. 

Colchester.  By  Rev.  E.  L. 
Cutts. 

Exeter.    By  E.  A.  Freeman. 

London.  By  Rev.  W.  ]. 
Loftie. 


Oxford.      By   Rev.  C.  W. 
Boase. 

Winchester.       By   Q.   W. 
Kitchin,  D.D. 

York.       By    Rev.    James 
Raine. 

New  York.    By  Tfieodore 
Roosevelt. 

Boston  (U.S.)     By  Henry 
Cabot  Lodge. 


MESSRS.  LONGMANS  &  CO.'S  STANDARD  AND  GENERAL  WORKS. 


History,  Politics,  Polity,  Political  Memoirs,  &e. — continued. 


Hunter  (Sir  WILLIAM  WILSON). 

A  HISTORY  OF  BRITISH  INDIA, 
Vol.  I. — Introductory  to  the  Overthrow 
of  the  English  in  the  Spice  Archipelago, 
1623.  With  4  Maps.  8vo.,  185.  Vol. 
II. — To  the  Union  of  the  Old  and  New 
Companies  under  the  Earl  of  Godolphin's 
Award,  1708.  8vo.,  i6s. 

THE  INDIA  OF  THE  QUEEN,  and 
other  Essays.  Edited  by  Lady  HUNTER. 
With  an  Introduction  by  FRANCIS  HENRY 
SKRINE,  Indian  Civil  Service  (Retired). 
8vo.,  gs.  net. 

Ingram. — A  CRITICAL  EXAMINA- 
TION OF  IRISH  HISTORY.  From  the  Eliza- 
bethan Conquest  to  the  Legislative  Union 
of  1800.  By  T.  DUNBAR  INGRAM,  LL.D. 
2  vols.  8vo.,  245. 

Joyce. — A  SHORT  HISTORY  OF  IRE- 
LAND, from  the  Earliest  Times  to  1603.  By 
P.  W.  JOYCE,  LL.D.  Crown  8vo.,  IDS.  6d. 

Kaye  and  Malleson.— HISTORY  OP 

THE  INDIAN  MUTINY,  1857-1858.  By  Sir 
JOHN  W.  KAYE  and  Colonel  G.  B.  MALLE- 
SON. With  Analytical  Index  and  Maps  and 
Plans.  6  vols.  Crown  8vo.,  35.  6d.  each. 

Lang  (ANDREW). 

THE  MYSTERY  OF  MARY  STUART. 
With  6  Photogravure  Plates  (4  Portraits) 
and  15  other  Illustrations.  8vo.,  i8s.  net. 

JAMES  THE  SIXTH  AND  THE  GOWRIE 
MYSTERY.  With  Gowrie's  Coat  of  Arms 
in  colour,  2  Photogravure  Portraits  and 
other  Illustrations.  8vo.,  125.  6d.  net. 

PRINCE  CHARLES  EDWARD  STUART, 
THE  YOUNG  CHEVALIER.  With  Photo- 
gravure Frontispiece.  Cr.  8vo.,  js.  6d.  net. 

L  a  u  r  i  e. — His  TO  RICA  L  SUR  VE  Y  OF 
PRE-CHRISTIAN  EDUCATION.  By  S.  S. 
LAURIE,  A.M.,  LL.D.  Crown  8vo.,  75.  6d. 

Lecky  (The  Rt.  Hon.  WILLIAM  E.  H.) 

HISTORY  OF  ENGLAND  IN  THE  EIGH- 
TEENTH CB^  TURY. 

Library  Edition.  8  vols.  8vo.  Vols.  I. 
and  II.,  1700-1760,  365. ;  Vols.  III.  and 
IV.,  1760-1784,  365. ;  Vols.  V.  and  VI., 
1784-1793,  365. ;  Vols.  VII.  and  VIII., 
1793-1800,  365. 

Cabinet  Edition.  ENGLAND.  7  vols.  Crown 
8vo.,  55.  net  each.  IRELAND.  5  vols. 
Crown  8vo.,  55.  net  each. 


Lecky  (The  Rt.  Hon.  WILLIAM  E.  H.) 
— continued. 

LEADERS  OF  PUBLIC  OPINION  IN 
IRELAND  :  FLOOD — G  RATTAN— O' CON- 
NELL.  2  vols.  8vo.,  255.  net. 

HISTORY  OF  EUROPEAN  MORALS 
FROM  AUGUSTUS  TO  CHARLEMAGNE.  2 
vols.  Crown  8vo.,  IDS.  net. 

A  SURVEY  OF  ENGLISH  ETHICS: 
Being  the  First  Chapter  of  the  '  History 
of  European  Morals '.  Edited,  with 
Introduction  and  Notes,  by  W.  A.  HIRST. 
Crown  8vo.,  35.  6d. 

HISTORY  OF  THE  RISE  AND  INFLU- 
ENCE OF  THE  SPIRIT  OF  RATIONALISM  IN 
EUROPE.  2  vols.  Crown  8vo.,  IDS.  net. 

DEMOCRACY  AND  LIBERTY. 

Library  Edition.     2  vols.     8vo.,  365. 
Cabinet  Edition.  2  vols.  Cr.  8vo.,  ios.net. 

Lieven.  —  LETTERS  OF  DOROTHEA, 
PRINCESS  LIEVEN,  DURING  HER  RESIDENCE 
IN  LONDON,  1812-1834.  Edited  by  LIONEL 
G.  ROBINSON.  With  2  Photogravure  Por- 
traits. 8vo.,  145.  net. 

Lowell. — GOVERNMENTS  AND  PAR- 
TIES IN  CONTINENTAL  EUROPE.  By  A. 
LAWRENCE  LOWELL.  2  vols.  8vo.,  2is. 

Lumsden's  Horse,  Records  of. — 

Edited  by  H.  H.  S.  PEARSE.  With  a  Map, 
and  numerous  Portraits  and  Illustrations  in 
the  Text.  4to.,  215.  net. 

Lynch. —  THE   WAR  OF  THE  CIVILI- 

SA  TIONS  :  BEING  A  RECORD  OF  '  A  FOREIGN 
DEVIL'S'  EXPERIENCES  WITH  THE  ALLIES 
IN  CHINA.  By  GEORGE  LYNCH,  Special 
Correspondent  of  the  '  Sphere,'  etc.  With 
Portrait  and  21  Illustrations.  Crown  8vo., 
6s.  net. 

Macaulay  (Lord). 

THE  LIFE  AND    WORKS   OF  LORD 

MACAULAY. 

'Edinburgh''  Edition.  lovols.  8vo. ,6s. each. 

Vols.  I. -IV.    HISTORY  OF  ENGLAND. 

Vols.  V.-VII.  ESSAYS,  BIOGRAPHIES, 
INDIAN  PENAL  CODE,  CONTRIBUTIONS 
TO  KNIGHT'S  'QUARTERLY MAGAZINE'. 

Vol.  VIII.  SPEECHES,  LAYS  OF  ANCIENT 
ROME,  MISCELLANEOUS  POEMS. 

Vols.  IX.  and  X.  THE  LIFE  AND 
LETTERS  OF  LORD  MACAULAY.  By 
Sir  G.  O.  TREVELYAN,  Bart, 


MESSRS.  LONGMANS  &  CO.'S  STANDARD  AND  GENERAL  WORKS. 


History,  Politics,  Polity,  Political  Memoirs,  &e. — continued. 


Macaulay  (Lord) — continued. 

THE  WORKS. 

'•Albany'  Edition.       With  12  Portraits. 

12  vols.  Large  Crown  8vo.,  35. 6d.  each. 
Vols.   I. -VI.      HISTORY   OF  ENGLAND, 

FROM  THE  ACCESSION  OF  JAMBS  THE 

SECOND. 

Vols.  VII. -X.  ESSAYS  AND  BIOGRAPHIES. 
Vols.    XI.-XII.     SPEECHES,    LAYS    OF 

ANCIENT  ROME,  ETC.,  AND  INDEX. 


Cabinet  Edition.       16  vols.      Post  8vo., 

£4  165. 
Library  Edition.     5  vols.     8vo.,  ^4. 

HISTORY   OP    ENGLAND  FROM  THE 
1     ACCESSION  OF  JAMES  THE  SECOND. 
Popular  Edition.     2  vols.    Cr.  8vo.,  55. 
Student's  Edition.   2  vols.  Cr.  8vo.,  J.2S. 
People's  Edition.    4  vols.   Cr.  8vo.,  i6s. 
'  Albany'  Edition.     With  6  Portraits.     6 

vols.  Large  Crown  8vo.,  35.  6d.  each. 
Cabinet  Edition.  8  vols.  Post  8vo.,  485. 
'  Edinburgh1  Edition.  4  vols.  8vo.,  6s. 

each. 

CRITICAL  AND  HISTORICAL  ESSAYS, 
WITH  LAYS  OF  ANCIENT  ROME,  etc.,  in  i 
volume. 

Popular  Edition.     Crown  8vo.,  2S.  6d. 
'  Silver  Library  '  Edition.    With  Portrait 

and  4  Illustrations  to  the  '  Lays '.     Cr. 

8vo.,  35.  6(f. 

CRITICAL  AND  HISTORICAL  ESSAYS. 
Student's  Edition,    i  vol.    Cr.  8vo.,  6s, 
'  Trevelyan '  Edition.    2  vols.    Cr.  8vo.,  gs. 
Cabinet  Edition.   4  vols.  Post  8vo.,  245. 
'  Edinburgh  '  Edition.     3  vols.     8vo.,  6s. 

each. 
Library  Edition.     3  vols.     8vo.,  365. 

Ess  A  ys,  which  may  be  had  separately, 
sewed,  6d.  each  ;  cloth,  is.  each. 


Addison  and  Walpole. 
Croker's  Boswell's  Johnson. 
Hallam's        Constitutional 

History. 

Warren  Hastings. 
The  Earl  of  Chatham  (Two 

Essays). 


Frederick  the  Great. 

Ranke  and  Gladstone. 

Lord  Bacon. 

Lord  Clive. 

Lord     Byron,    and     The 

Comic     Dramatists    of 

the  Restoration. 


MISCELLANEOUS        WRITINGS, 
SPEECHES  AND  POEMS. 
Popular  Edition.     Crown  8vo.,  2*.  6d. 
Cabinet  Edition.    4  vo!c.     Post  8vo.,  245. 

SELECTIONS  FROM  THE  WRITINGS  OF 
LORD  MACAULAY.  Edited,  with  Occa- 
sional Notes,  by  the  Right  Hon.  Sir  G.  O. 
TREVELYAN,  Bart.  Crown  8vo.,  6s. 


Mackinnon  (]AMES,  Ph.D.). 

THE  HISTORY  OF  EDWARD  THE 
THIRD.  8vo.,  i8s. 

THE  GROWTH  AND  DECLINE  OF  THE 
FRENCH  MONARCHY.  8vo.,  2is.  net. 

Mallet. — MALLET  DU  PAN  AND  THE 
FRENCH  REVOLUTION.  By  BERNARD 
MALLET.  With  Photogravure  Portrait. 
8vo.,  las.  6d.  net. 

May. — THE  CONSTITUTIONAL  HIS- 
TORY OF  ENGLAND  since  the  Accession 
of  George  III.  1760-1870.  By  Sir  THOMAS 
ERSKINE  MAY,  K.C.B.  (Lord  Farnborough). 
3  vols.  Cr.  8vo.,  i8s. 

Merivale  (CHARLES,  D.D.). 

HISTORY  OF  THE  ROMANS  UNDER  THE 
EMPIRE.  8  vols.  Crown  8vo.,  35.  6d.  each. 

THE  FALL  OF  THE  ROMAN  REPUBLIC: 
a  Short  History  of  the  Last  Century  of  the 
Commonwealth.  i2mo.,  js.  6d. 

GENERAL  HISTORY  OF  ROME,  from 
the  Foundation  of  the  City  to  the  Fall  of 
Augustulus,  B.C.  753-A.D.  476.  With  5 
Maps.  Crown  8vo.,  75.  6d. 

Montague.  —  THE  ELEMENTS  OF 
ENGLISH  CONSTITUTIONAL  HISTORY.  By 
F.  C.  MONTAGUE,  M.A.  Crown  8vo.,  35.  6d. 

Moran. — THE  THEORY  AND  PRAC- 
TICE OF  THE  ENGLISH  GOVERNMENT.  By 
THOMAS  FRANCIS  MORAN,  Ph.D.,  Professor 
of  History  and  Economics  in  Purdue  Uni- 
versity, U.S.  Crown  8vo.,  55.  net. 

Nash. — THE  GREAT  FAMINE  AND 
ITS  CAUSES.  By  VAUGHAN  NASH.  With 
8  Illustrations  from  Photographs  by  the 
Author,  and  a  Map  of  India  showing  the 
Famine  Area.  Crown  8vo.,  6s. 

Owens    College    Essays. — Edited 

by  T.  F.  TOUT,  M.A.,  Professor  of  History 
in  the  Owens  College,  Victoria  University, 
and  JAMES  TAIT,  M.A.,  Assistant  Lecturer 
in  History.  With  4  Maps.  8vo.,  i2s.  6d.  net. 

Pears. —  THE  DESTRUCTION  OF  THE 
GREEK  EMPIRE  AND  THE  STORY  OF  THE 
CAPTURE  OF  'CONSTANTINOPLE  BY  THE 
TURKS.  By  EDWIN  PEARS,  LL.B.  With 
3  Maps  and  4  Illustrations.  8vo.,  185.  net. 


MESSRS.  LONGMANS  &  CO.'S  STANDARD  AND  GENERAL  WORKS. 


History,  Polities,  Polity,  Political  Memoirs,  &e. — continued. 


Powell     and     Trevelyan.  —  THE 

PEASANTS'  RISING  AND  THE  LOLLARDS  : 
a  Collection  of  Unpublished  Documents. 
Edited  by  EDGAR  POWELL  and  G.  M. 
TREVELYAN.  8vo.,  6s.  net. 

Randolph. — THE  LAW  AND  POLICY 
OF  ANNEXATION,  with  Special  Reference  to 
the  Philippines  ;  together  with  Observations 
on  the  Status  of  Cuba.  By  CARMAN  F. 
RANDOLPH.  8vo.,  gs.  net. 

Rankin  (REGINALD). 

THE  MARQUIS  D'ARGENSON  ;  AND 
RICHARD  THE  SECOND.  8vo.,  los.  6d.  net. 

A  SUBALTERN'S  LETTERS  TO  His 
WIFE.  (The  Boer  War.)  Crown  8vo., 
3s.  6rf. 

Ransome. — THE  RISE  OF  CONSTI- 
TUTIONAL GOVERNMENT  IN  ENGLAND. 
By  CYRIL  RANSOME,  M.A.  Crown  8vo.,  65. 

Seebohm  (FREDERIC,  LL.D.,  F.S.A.). 

THE  ENGLISH  VILLAGE  COMMUNITY. 

With  13  Maps  and  Plates.     8vo.,  i6s. 
TRIBAL   CUSTOM  IN   ANGLO-SAXON 

LAW:  being  an   Essay  supplemental  to 

(1)  '  The  English   Village   Community,' 

(2)  '  The    Tribal    System     in    Wales '. 
8vo.,  i6s. 

Seton-Karr. — THE  CALL  TO  ARMS, 

1900-1901 ;  or  a  Review  of  the  Imperial 
Yeomanry  Movement,  and  some  subjects 
connected  therewith.  By  Sir  HENRY  SETON- 
KARR,  M.P.  With  a  Frontispiece  by  R. 
CATON-WOODVILLE.  Crown  8vo.,  55.  net. 

Shaw. — A  HISTORY  OP  THE  ENGLISH 
CHURCH  DURING  THE  CIVIL  WARS  AND 
UNDER  THE  COMMONWEALTH,  1640-1660. 
By  WILLIAM  A.  SHAW,  Litt.D.  2  vols. 
8vo.,  365. 

Sheppard.  —  THE  OLD  ROYAL 
PALACE  OF  WHITEHALL.  By  EDGAR 
SHEPPARD,  D.D.,  Sub-Dean  of  H.M. 
Chapels  Royal,  Sub-Almoner  to  the  King. 
With  6  Photogravure  Plates  and  33  other 
Illustrations.  Medium  8vo.,  215.  net. 

Smith. — CARTHAGE  AND  THE  CARTH- 
AGINIANS. By  R.  BOSWORTH  SMITH,  M.A. 
With  Maps,  Plans,  etc.  Cr.  8vo.,  35.  6d. 

Stephens.  —  A  HISTORY  OF  THE 
FRENCH  REVOLUTION.  By  H.  MORSE 
STEPHENS.  8vo.  Vols.  I.  and  II.  i8s.  each. 


Sternberg.  —  MY  EXPERIENCES  OF 
THE  BOER  WAR.  By  ADALBERT  COUNT 
STERNBERG.  With  Preface  by  Lieut.-Col. 
G.  F.  R.  HENDERSON.  Crown  8vo.,  55.  net. 

Stubbs. — HISTORY  OF  THE  UNIVER- 
SITY OF  DUBLIN.  By  J.  W.  STUBBS.  8vo., 
i2s.  6d. 

Stubbs.  —  HISTORICAL  INTRODUC- 
TIONS TO  THE  'ROLLS  SERIES'.  By 
WILLIAM  STUBBS,  D.D.,  formerly  Bishop 
of  Oxford,  Regius  Professor  of  Modern 
History  in  the  University.  Collected  and 
Edited  by  ARTHUR  HASSALL,  M.A.  8vo., 
i2s.  6d.  net. 

Sutherland.  —  THE  HISTORY  OF  AUS- 
TRALIA AND  NEW  ZEALAND,  from  1606- 
1900.  By  ALEXANDER  SUTHERLAND,  M.  A., 
and  GEORGE  SUTHERLAND,  M.A.  Crown 
8vo.,  25.  6d. 

Taylor. — A  STUDENT'S  MANUAL  OF 
THE  HISTORY  OF  INDIA.  By  Colonel  MEA- 
DOWS TAYLOR,  C.S.I.  Cr.  8vo.,  75.  6d. 

Thomson. — CHINA  AND  THE  Po  WERS  : 
a  Narrative  of  the  Outbreak  of  1900.  By 
H.  C.  THOMSON.  With  2  Maps  and  29 
Illustrations.  8vo.,  zos.  6d.  net. 

Todd. — PARLIAMENTARY  GOVERN- 
MENT IN  THE  BRITISH  COLONIES.  By 
ALPHEUS  TODD,  LL.D.  8vo.,  305.  net. 

Trevelyan. —  THE  AMERICAN  DEVO- 
LUTION. Part  I.  1766-1776.  By  Sir  G.  O. 
TREVELYAN,  Bart.  8vo.,  j6s. 

Trevelyan. — ENGLAND  IN  THE  AGE 
OF  WYCLIFFE.  By  GEORGE  MACAULAY 
TREVELYAN.  8vo.,  155. 

Wakeman  and  Hassall. — ESSAYS 
INTRODUCTORY  TO  THE  STUDY  OF  ENGLISH 
CONSTITUTIONAL  HISTORY.  Edited  by 
HENRY  OFFLEY  WAKEMAN,  M.A.,  and 
ARTHUR  HASSALL,  M.A.  Crown  8vo.,  6s. 

W^alpole. — HISTORY    OF    ENGLAND 

FROM    THE     CONCLUSION    OF    THE     GREAT 

WAR  IN  1815  TO  1858.     By  Sir  SPENCER 
WALPOLE,  K.C.B.  6  vols.  Cr.  8vo.,  65.  each. 

Wylie  QAMES  HAMILTON,  M.A.). 

HISTORY  OF  ENGLAND  UNDER 
HENRY  IV.  4  vols.  Crown  8vo.  Vol. 
I.,  1399-1404,  IDS.  6d.  Vol.  II.,  1405- 
1406,  15$.  (out  of  print).  Vol.  III.,  1407- 
1411,  155.  Vol.  IV.,  1411-1413,  2is. 

THE  COUNCIL  OF  CONSTANCE  TO  THE 
DBA  TH  OF  JOHN  Hus.  Cr.  8vo.,  6s.  net. 


MESSRS.  LONGMANS  &  CO.'S  STANDARD  AND  GENERAL  WORKS. 


Biography,   Personal   Memoirs,  &c. 

Bacon. — THE  LETTERS  AND  LIFE  OF  'Fox. —  THE  EARLY  HISTORY  OF 
FRANCIS  BACON,  INCLUDING  ALL  HIS  Oc-  '  CHARLES  JAMES  Fox.  By  the  Right  Hon. 
CASIONAL  WORKS.  Edited  by  JAMES  SPED-  Sir  G.  O.  TREVELYAN,  Bart.  Crown  8vo., 
DING.  7  vols.  8vo.,  £4  45.  35.  6d. 


Bagehot. — BIOGRAPHICAL  STUDIES. 
By  WALTER  BAGEHOT.  Crown  8vo.,  35.  6d. 

Blount.  —  THE  MEMOIRS  OF  SIR 
EDWARD  BLOUNT,  K.C.B.,  ETC.  Edited 
by  STUART  J.  REID,  Author  of  '  The  Life 
and  Times  of  Sydney  Smith,'  etc.  With  3 
Photogravure  Plates.  8vo.,  IDS.  6d.  net. 

Bowen. — EDWARD  BOWEN:  A  ME- 
MOIR. By  the  Rev.  the  Hon.  W.  E.  BOWEN. 
With  Appendices,  3  Photogravure  Portraits 
and  2  other  Illustrations.  8vo.,  125.  6d.  net. 

Carlyle. — TMOMAS  CARLYLE  :  A  His- 
tory of  his  Life.  By  JAMES  ANTHONY 
FROUDE. 

1795-1835.     2  vols.     Crown  8vo.,  75. 
1834-1881.     2  vols.     Crown  8vo.,  js. 

Crozier. — MY  INNER  LIFE  :  being  a 
Chapter  in  Personal  Evolution  and  Auto- 
biography. By  JOHN  BEATTIE  CROZIER, 
LL.D.  8vo.,  145. 

Dante. — THE  LIFE  AND  WORKS  OF 
DANTE  ALLIGHIERI  :  being  an  Introduction 
to  the  Study  of  the  '  Divina  Commedia '. 
By  the  Rev.  J.  F.  HOGAN,  D.D.  With 
Portrait.  8vo.,  ias.  6d. 

Danton. — LIFE  OF  DANTON.     By  A. 

H.  BEESLY.     With  Portraits.     Cr.  8vo.,  6s. 

De  Bode. —  THE  BARONESS  DE  BODE, 

1775-1803.  By  WILLIAM  S.  CHILDE-PEM- 
BERTON.  With  4  Photogravure  Portraits 
and  other  Illustrations.  8vo.,  gilt  top, 
i2s.  6d.  net. 

Erasmus. 

LIFE  AND  LETTERS  OF  ERASMUS. 
By  JAMES  ANTHONY  FROUDE.  Crown 
8vo.,  35.  6d. 

THE  EPISTLES  OF  ERASMUS,  from 
his  Earliest  Letters  to  his  Fifty-first  Year, 
arranged  in  Order  of  Time.  English 
Translations,  with  a  Commentary.  By 
FRANCIS  MORGAN  NICHOLS.  8vo.,  i8s.  net. 

Faraday. — FARADAY  AS  A  DIS- 
COVERER. By  JOHN  TYNDALL.  Crown 
8vo.,  3s.  6d. 

Fenelon  :     his      Friends     and     his  j 
Enemies,  1651-1715.     By  E.  K.  SANDERS. 
With  Portrait.     8vo.,  IDS.  6d. 


Granville. — SOME  RECORDS  OF  THE 
LATER  LIFE  OF  HARRIET,  COUNTESS 
GRANVILLE.  By  her  Granddaughter,  the 
Hon.  Mrs.  OLDFIELD.  With  17  Portraits. 
8vo.,  gilt  top,  i6s.  net. 

Grey.  —  MEMOIR  OF  SIR  GEORGE 
GREY,  BART,  G.C.B.,  1799-1882.  By 
MANDELL  CREIGHTON,  D.  D.,  late  Lord 
Bishop  of  London.  With  3  Portraits. 
Crown  8vo.,  6s.  net. 

Hamilton. — LIFE  OF  SIR  WILLIAM 
HAMILTON.  By  R.  P.  GRAVES.  8vo.  3  vols. 
155.  each.  ADDENDUM.  8vo.,  6d.  sewed. 

Harrow   School   Register  (The), 

1801-1900.  Second  Edition,  1901.  Edited 
by  M.  G.  DAUGLISH,  Barrister-at-Law. 
8vo.  IDS.  net. 

Havelock. — MEMOIRS  OF  SIR  HENRY 
HAVELOCK,  K.C.B.  By  JOHN  CLARK 
MARSHMAN.  Crown  8vo.,  35.  6d. 

Haweis. — MY  MUSICAL  LIFE.  By  the 
Rev.H.R.HAWEis.  With  Portrait  of  Richard 
Wagner  and  3  Illustrations.  Cr.  8vo.,  6s.  net. 

Higgins. — THE  BERNARDS  OF  AB ING- 
TON  AND  NETHER  WINCHENDON:  A  Family 
History.  By  Mrs.  NAPIER  HIGGINS.  2 
Vols.  8vo.,  2is.  net. 

Hunter. — TH&  LIFE  OF  SIR  WILLIAM 
WILSON  HUNTER,  K.C.S.I.,  M.A.,  LL.D. 
Author  of '  A  History  of  British  India,'  etc. 
By  FRANCIS  HENRY  SKRINE,  F.S.S.  With 
6  Portraits  (2  Photogravures)  and  4  other 
Illustrations.  8vo.,  i6s.  net. 

Jackson. — STONEWALL  JACKSON  AND 

THE  AMERICANClVIL  WAR.     By  LieUt.-Col. 

G.  F.  R.  HENDERSON.  With  2  Portraits  and 
33  Maps  and  Plans.  2  vols.  Cr.  8vo.,  i6s.  net. 

Kielmansegge. — DIARY  OF  A  JOUR- 
NEY TO  ENGLAND  IN  THE  YEARS  1761- 
1762.      By    Count    FREDERICK    KIELMAN- 
SEGGE.   With  4  Illustrations.     Crown  8vo. 
55.  net. 

Luther. — LIFE  OF  LUTHER.  By 
JULIUS  KOSTLIN.  With  62  Illustrations 
and  4  Facsimilies  of  MSS.  Cr.  8vo.,  35.  6rf. 


io        MESSRS.  LONGMANS  &  CO.'S  STANDARD  AND  GENERAL  WORKS. 


Biography,   Personal  Memoirs,   &e. — continued. 


Macaulay. — THE  LIFE  AND  LETTERS 
OF  LORD  MACAU  LAY.  By  the  Right  Hon. 
Sir  G.  O.  TREVELYAN,  Bart. 

Popular  Edition,    i  vol.    Cr.  8vo.,  2s.  6d. 

Student's  Edition     i  vol.     Cr.  8vo.,  6s. 

Cabinet  Edition.     2  vols.     Post  8vo.,  i2s. 

' Edinburgh' Edition.  2 vols.  8vo.,6s. each. 

Library  Edition.     2  vols.     8vo.,  365. 

Marbot.  —  THE  MEMOIRS  OF  THE 
BARON  DE  MARBOT.  2  vols.  Cr.  8vo.,  75. 

Max  Miiller  (F.) 

THE  LIFE  AND  LETTERS  OF  THE 
RIGHT  HON.  FRIEDRICH  MAX  MULLER. 
Edited  by  his  Wife.  With  Photogravure 
Portraits  and  other  Illustrations.  2  vols., 
8vo.,  325.  net. 

My  AUTOBIOGRAPHY  :  a  Fragment. 

With  6  Portraits.     8vo.,  i2s.  6d. 
AULD  LANG  SYNE.     Second  Series. 

8vo.,  IDS.  6d. 
CHIPS  FROM  A  GERMAN  WORKSHOP. 

Vol.  II.  Biographical  Essays.  Cr.  8vo.,  55. 

Meade. — GENERAL  SIR  RICHARD 
MEADE  AND  THE  FEUDATORY  STATES  OF 
CENTRAL  AND  SOUTHERN  INDIA.  By 
THOMAS  HENRY  THORNTON.  With  Portrait, 
Map  and  Illustrations.  8vo.,  IDS.  6d.  net. 

Morris.  —  THE  LIFE  OF  WILLIAM 
MORRIS.  By  J.  W.  MACKAIL.  With  2  Por- 
traits and  8  other  Illustrations  by  E.  H.  NEW, 
etc.  2  vols.  Large  Crown  8vo.,  IDS.  net. 

On  the  Banks  of  the  Seine.     By 

A.  M.  F.,  Author  of  'Foreign  Courts  and 
Foreign  Homes'.     Crown  8vo.,  6s. 

Paget. — MEMOIRS  AND  LETTERS  OF 
SIR  JAMES  PAGET.    Edited  by  STEPHEN  i 
PAGET,   one   of  his  sons.     With    Portrait. 
8vo.,  6s.  net. 

Place. — THE  LIFE  OF  FRANCIS  PLACE, 
1771-1854.  By  GRAHAM  WALLAS,  M.A. 
With  2  Portraits.  8vo.,  125. 


Rochester,    and    other    Literary 

Rakes  of  the  Court  of  Charles  II.,  with 
some  Account  of  their  Surroundings.  By 

the  Author  of  '  The  Life  of  Sir  Kenelm 
Digby,'  The  Life  of  a  Prig,'  etc.  With  15 
Portraits.  8vo.,  i6s. 

Romanes.  —  THE  LIFE  AND  LETTERS 
OF  GEORGE  JOHN  ROMANES,  M.A.,  LL.D., 
F.K.S.  Written  and  Edited  by  his  WIFE. 
With  Portrait  and  2  Illustrations.  Cr.  8vo., 
55.  net. 


. PASS  AGES  FROM  THEDlARIES 

OF  MRS.  PHILIP  LYBBE  POWYS,  OF  HARD- 
WICK  HOUSE,  OXON.  1756-1808.  Edited  by 
EMILY  J.  CLIMENSON.  8vo.,  gilt  top,  i6s. 

Ramakr/sh/ia  :  His  LIFE  AND 
SAYINGS.  By  the  Right  Hon.  F.  MAX 
MULLER.  Crown  8vo.,  55. 

Rich. — MARY  RICH,  COUNTESS  OF 
WARWICK  (1625-1678)  :  Her  Family  and 
Friends.  By  C.  FELL  SMITH.  With  7 
Photogravure  Portraits  and  9  other  Illustra- 
tions. 8vo.,  gilt  top,  i8s.  net. 


l.  -  SWALLOWPIELJD  AND  ITS 
OWNERS.  By  CONSTANCE  LADY  RUSSELL, 
of  Swallowfield  Park.  With  15  Photogravure 
Portraits  and  36  other  Illustrations.  410., 
gilt  edges,  425.  net. 

Seebohm.  —  THEOXFORD  REFORMERS 
—  JOHN  COLET,  ERASMUS,  AND  THOMAS 
MORE  :  a  History  of  their  Fellow-  Work. 
By  FREDERIC  SEEBOHM.  8vo.,  145. 

Shakespeare.  —  OUTLINES  OF  THE 

LIFE  OF  SHAKESPEARE.  By  J.  O.  HALLI- 
WELL-PHILLIPPS.  With  Illustrations  and 
Facsimiles.  2  vols.  Royal  8vo.,  2is. 

Tales  of  my  Father.—  By  A.  M.  F. 

Crown  8vo.,  65. 

Tallentyre.  —  THE    WOMEN  OF  THE 

SALONS,  and  other  French  Portraits.  By 
S.  G.  TALLENTYRE.  With  n  Photogravure 
Portraits.  8vo.,  IDS.  6d.  net. 

Victoria,    Queen,    1819-1901.      By 

RICHARD  R.  HOLMES,  M.V.O.,  F.S.A. 
With  Photogravure  Portrait.  Crown  8vo., 
gilt  top,  55.  net. 

Walpole.  —  SOME  UNPUBLISHED 
LETTERS  OF  HORACE  WALPOLE.  Edited 
by  Sir  SPENCER  WALPOLE,  K.C.B.  With 
2  Portraits.  Crown  8vo.,  45.  6d.  net. 

Wellington.  —  LIFE  OF  THE  DUKE 
OF  WELLINGTON.  By  the  Rev.  G.  R. 
GLEIG,  M.A.  Crown  8vo.,  35.  6d. 

Wilkins  (W.  H.). 

CAROLINE  THE  ILLUSTRIOUS,  QUEEN- 
CONSORT  OF  GEORGE  II.  AND  SOMETIME 
QUEEN-REGENT:  a  Study  of  Her  Life 
and  Time.  2  vols.  8vo.,  365. 

THE  LOVE  OF  AN  UNCROWNED 
QUEEN:  Sophie  Dorothea,  Consort  of 
George  I.,  and  her  Correspondence  with 
Philip  Christopher,  Count  Konigsmarck. 
With  Portraits  and  Illustrations.  8vo., 
i2s.  6<f.  net. 


MESSRS.   LONGMANS  &  CO.'S  STANDARD  AND  GENERAL  WORKS. 


Travel  and  Adventure,  the  Colonies,  &c. 


Arnold. — SEAS  AND  LANDS.  By  Sir 
EDWIN  ARNOLD.  With  71  Illustrations. 
Crown  8vo. ,  35.  6d. 

Baker  (Sir  S.  W.). 

EIGHT  YEARS  IN  CEYLON.  With  6 
Illustrations.  Crown  8vo.,  35.  6d. 

THE  RIFLE  AND  THE  HOUND  IN 
CEYLON.  With  6  Illusts.  Cr.  8vo.,  35. 6d. 

Ball  (JOHN). 

THE  ALPINE  GUIDE.  Reconstructed 
and  Revised  on  behalf  of  the  Alpine  Club, 
by  W.  A.  B.  COOLIDGE. 

Vol.  I.,  THE  WESTERN  ALPS  :  the  Alpine 
Region,  South  of  the  Rhone  Valley, 
from  the  Col  de  Tenda  to  the  Simplon 
Pass.  With  9  New  and  Revised  Maps. 
Crown  8vo.,  125.  net. 

HINTS  AND  NOTES,  PRACTICAL  AND 
SCIENTIFIC,  FOR  TRAVELLERS  IN  THE 
ALPS:  being  a  Revision  of  the  General 
Introduction  to  the  '  Alpine  Guide  '. 
Crown  8vo.,  35.  net. 

Bent. — THE  RUINED  CITIES  OF  MA- 
SHONALAND  :  being  a  Record  of  Excavation 
and  Exploration  in  1891.  By  J.  THEODORE 
BENT.  With  117  Illustrations.  Crown 
8vo.,  35.  6d. 

Brassey  (The  Late  Lady). 

A   Vo YA GE  IN  THE  '  SuNBEA M'  ;    O UR 

HOME    ON   THE    OCEAN  FOR    ELEVEN 

MONTHS. 

Cabinet  Edition.  With  Map  and  66  Illus- 
trations. Cr.  8vo.,  gilt  edges,  75.  6d. 

'  Silver  Library  '  Edition.  With  66  Illus- 
trations. Crown  8vo.,  35.  6d. 

Popular  Edition.  With  60  Illustrations. 
4to.,  6d.  sewed,  is.  cloth. 

School  Edition.  With  37  Illustrations. 
Fcp.,  2s.  cloth,  or  35.  white  parchment. 

SUNSHINE  AND  STORM  IN  THE  EAST. 
Popular  Edition.     With  103  Illustrations. 
4to.,  6d.  sewed,   is.  cloth. 

IN  THE  TRADES,  THE  TROPICS,  AND 
THE  '  ROARING  FORTIES  '. 
Cabinet  Edition.    With  Map  and  220  Illus- 
trations.    Cr.  8vo.,  gilt  edges,  ys.  6d. 

Cockerell. — TRAVELS  IN  SOUTHERN 
EUROPE  AND  THE  LEVANT,  1810-1817.  By 
C.  R.  COCKERELL,  Architect,  R.A.  Edited 
by  his  Son,  SAMUEL  PEPYS  COCKERELL. 
With  Portrait.  8vo. 


Fountain  (PAUL). 

THE  GREAT  DESERTS  AND  FORESTS 
OF  NORTH  AMERICA.  With  a  Preface  by 
W.  H.  HUDSON,  Author  of  The  Naturalist 
in  La  Plata,'  etc.  8vo.,  gs.  6d.  net. 

THE  GREAT  MOUNTAINS  AND 
FORESTS  OF  SOUTH  AMERICA.  With 
Portrait  and  7  Illustrations.  8vo.,  IDS.  6d . 
net. 

Froude  (JAMES  A.). 

OCEANA  :  or  England  and  her  Col- 
onies. With  9  Illustrations.  Cr.  8vo.,3s.  6d. 

THE  ENGLISH  IN  THE  WEST  INDIES  : 
or,  the  Bow  of  Ulysses.  With  9  Illustra- 
tions. Crown  8vo.,  2s.  boards,  2s.  6d.  cloth. 

Grove. — SEVENTY-ONE  DAYS'  CAMP- 
ING IN  MOROCCO.  By  Lady  GROVE.  With 
Photogravure  Portrait  and  32  Illustrations 
from  Photographs.  8vo.,  75.  6d.  net. 

Haggard. — A  WINTER  PILGRIMAGE  : 

Being  an  Account  of  Travels  through 
Palestine,  Italy  and  the  Island  of  Cyprus, 
undertaken  in  the  year  1900.  By  H.  RIDER 
HAGGARD.  With  31  Illustrations  from  Photo- 
graphs. Cr.  8vo.,  gilt  top,  i2s.  6d.  net. 

Hard  wick. — AN  IVORY  TRADER  IN 
NORTH  KENIA  :  the  Record  of  an  Expedi- 
tion to  the  Country  North  of  Mount  Kenia 
in  East  Equatorial  Africa,  with  an  account 
of  the  Nomads  of  Galla-Land.  By  A. 
ARKELL-HARDWICK,  F.R.G.S.  With  23 
Illustrations  from  Photographs,  and  a  Map. 
8vo.,  1 2s.  6d.  net. 

Heathcote.— ST.  KILDA.  By  NOR- 
MAN HEATHCOTE.  With  80  Illustrations 
from  Sketches  and  Photographs  of  the 
People,  Scenery  and  Birds  by  the  Author. 
8vo.,  IDS.  6d.  net. 

Howitt. —  VISITS  TO  REMARKABLE 
PLACES.  Old  Halls,  Battle- Fields,  Scenes, 
illustrative  of  Striking  Passages  in  English 
History  and  Poetry.  By  WILLIAM  HOWITT. 
With  80  Illustrations.  Crown  8vo.,  35.  6d. 

Knight  (E.  F.). 

WITH  THE  ROYAL  TOUR  :  a  Narra- 
tive of  the  Recent  Tour  of  the  Duke  and 
Duchess  of  Cornwall  and  York  through 
Greater  Britain.  With  16  Illustrations 
and  a  Map.  Crown  8vo.,  5$.  net.  * 

THE  CRUISE  OF  THE  '  ALERTE  ' :  the 
Narrative  of  a  Search  for  Treasure  on  the 
Desert  Island  of  Trinidad.  With  2  Maps 
and  23  Illustrations.  Crown  8vo.,  35.  6rf. 


12         MESSRS.  LONGMANS  &  CO.'S  STANDARD  AND  GENERAL  WORKS. 


Travel  and  Adventure,  the  Colonies,  &c. — continued. 


Knight  (E.  F.) — continued. 

WHERE  THREE  EMPIRES  MEET:  a 
Narrative  of  Recent  Travel  in  Kashmir, 
Western  Tibet,  Baltistan^  Ladak,  Gilgit, 
and  the  adjoining  Countries.  With  a 
Map  and  54  Illustrations.  Cr.  8vo.,  35.  6d. 

THE  ' FALCON'  ON  THE  BALTIC:  a 
Voyage  from  London  to  Copenhagen  in 
a  Three-Tonner.  With  10  Full-page 
Illustrations.  Crown  8vo.,  35.  6d. 

Lees. — PEAKS  AND  PINES  :  another 
Norway  Book.  By  J.  A.  LEES.  With  63 
Illustrations  and  Photographs.  Cr.  8vo.,  6s. 

Lees  and  Clutterbuck.— B.C.  1887  : 

A  RAMBLE  IN  BRITISH  COLUMBIA.  By  J.  A. 
LEES  and  W.  J.  CLUTTERBUCK.  With  Map 
and  75  Illustrations.  Crown  8vo.,  35.  6d. 

Lynch. — ARMENIA  :  Travels  and 
Studies.  By  H.  F.  B.  LYNCH.  With  197 
Illustrations  (some  in  tints)  reproduced 
from  Photographs  and  Sketches  by  the 
Author,  16  Maps  and  Plans,  a  Bibliography, 
and  a  Map  of  Armenia  and  adjacent 
countries.  2  vols.  Medium  8vo.,  gilt  top, 
42s.  net. 

Nansen. — THE  FIRST  CROSSING  OF 
GREENLAND.  By  FRIDTJOF  NANSEN.  With 
143  Illustrations  and  a  Map.  Crown  8vo., 
35.  6d. 


Rice. — OCCASIONAL  FSSAYS  ON  NA- 
TIVE SOUTH  INDIAN  LIFE.  By  STANLEY 
P.  RICE,  Indian  Civil  Service.  8vo.,  los.  6d. 

Smith. — CLIMBING  IN  THE  BRITISH 
ISLES.     By  W.  P.  HASKETT  SMITH.    With 
Illustrations  and  Numerous  Plans. 
Part  I.  ENGLAND.     i6mo.,  35.  net. 

Part  II.   WALES  AND  IRELAND.     i6mo., 
35.  net. 

Spender. — T\vo  WINTERS  IN  NOR- 
WAY: being  an  Account  of  Two  Holidays 
spent  on  Snow-shoes  and  in  Sleigh  Driving, 
and  including  an  Expedition  to  the  Lapps. 
By  A.  EDMUND  SPENDER.  With  40  Illustra- 
tions from  Photographs.  8vo.,  IDS.  6d.  net. 

Stephen.  —  THE  PLAY-GROUND  OF 
EUROPE  (The  Alps).  By  Sir  LESLIE 
STEPHEN,  K.C.B.  With  4  Illustrations. 
Crown  8vo.,  35.  6d. 

Three    in    Norway.      By  Two  of 

Them.     With  a  Map  and  59  Illustrations. 
Crown  8vo.,  2s.  boards,  zs.  6d.  cloth. 

Tyndall. — (]OHN). 

THE  GLACIERS  OF  THE  ALPS.    With 
61  Illustrations.    Crown  8vo.,  65.  6d.  net. 

HOURS  OF  EXERCISE  IN  THE  ALPS. 
With  7  Illustrations.    Cr.  8vo.,  6s.  6d.  net. 


Sport  and  Pastime. 

THE  BADMINTON  LIBRARY. 

Edited  by  HIS  GRACE  THE  (EIGHTH)  DUKE  OF  BEAUFORT,  K.G., 
and  A.  E.  T.  WATSON. 


ARCHER  Y.  By  C.  J.  LONGMAN  and 
Col.  H.  WALROND.  With  Contributions  by 
Miss  LEGH,  Viscount  DILLON,  etc.  With 
2  Maps,  23  Plates  and  172  Illustrations  in 
the  Text.  Crown  8vo.,  cloth,  6s.  net;  half- 
bound,  with  gilt  top,  gs.  net. 


ATHLETICS.  By  MONTAGUE 
SHEARMAN.  With  Chapters  on  Athletics 
at  School  by  W.  BEACHER  THOMAS  ;  Ath- 
lAic  Sports  in  America  by  C.  H.  SHERRILL  ; 
a  Contribution  on  Paper-chasing  by  W.  RYE, 
and  an  Introduction  by  Sir  RICHARD  WEB- 
STER (Lord  ALVERSTONE).  With  12  Plates 
and  37  Illustrations  in  the  Text.  Cr.  8vo., 
cloth,  6s.  net;  half-bound,with  gilt  top.gs.net. 


BIG     GAME    SHOOTING.       By 

CLIVE  PHILLIPPS-WOLLEY. 

Vol.  I.  AFRICA  AND  AMERICA. 
With  Contributions  by  Sir  SAMUEL  W. 
BAKER,  W.  C.  OSWELL,  F.  C.  SELOUS, 
etc.  With  20  Plates  and  57  Illustrations 
in  the  Text.  Crown  8vo.,  cloth,  6s.  net ; 
half-bound,  with  gilt  top,  gs.  net. 

Vol.  II.  EUROPE,  ASIA,  AND  THE 
ARCTIC  REGIONS.  With  Contribu- 
tions by  Lieut. -Colonel  R.  HEBER 
PERCY,  Major  ALGERNON  C.  HEBER 
PERCY,  etc.  With  17  Plates  and  56  Illus- 
trations in  the  Text.  Crown  8vo.,  cloth 
6s.  net ;  half-bound,  with  gilt  top,  gs.  net. 


MESSRS.  LONGMANS  &  CO.'S  STANDARD  AND  GENERAL  WORKS. 


Sport  and   Pastime — continued. 

THE   BADMINTON    LIBRARY— continued. 

Edited  by  HIS  GRACE  THE  (EIGHTH)  DUKE  OF  BEAUFORT,  K.G., 
and  A.  E.  T.  WATSON. 


BILLIARDS.  By  Major  W.  BROAD- 
FOOT,  R.E.  With  Contributions  by  A.  H. 
BOYD,  SYDENHAM  DIXON,  W.  J.  FORD,  etc. 
W'ith  ii  Plates,  19  Illustrations  in  the  Text, 
and  numerous  Diagrams.  Crown  8vo.,  cloth, 
65.  net ;  half-bound,  with  gilt  top,  gs.  net. 


COURSING  AND  FALCONRY. 
By  HARDING  Cox,  CHARLES  RICHARDSON, 
and  the  Hon.  GERALD  LASCELLES.  With 
20  Plates  and  55  Illustrations  in  the  Text. 
Crown  8vo.,  cloth,  6s.  net ;  half-bound,  with 
gilt  top,  gs.  net. 


CRICKET.  By  A.  G.  STEEL  and 
the  Hon.  R.  H.  LYTTELTON.  With  Con- 
tributions by  ANDREW  LANG,  W.  G.  GRACE, 
F.  GALE,  etc.  With  13  Plates  and  52  Illus- 
trations in  the  Text.  Crown  8vo.,  cloth,  6s. 
net ;  half-bound,  with  gilt  top,  gs.  net. 


CYCLING.  By  the  EARL  OF  ALBE- 
MARLE  and  G.  LACY  HILLIER.  With  ig 
Plates  and  44  Illustrations  in  the  Text. 
Crown  8vo.,  cloth,  6s.  net ;  half- bound,  with 
gilt  top,  gs.  net. 

DANCING.     By  Mrs.  LILLY  GROVE.  ' 
With  Contributions  by  Miss  MIDDLETON,  i 
The    Hon.    Mrs.   ARMYTAGE,   etc.      With  \ 
Musical  Examples,  and  38  Full-page  Plates 
and  g3  Illustrations  in  the  Text.      Crown 
8vo.,  cloth,  6s.  net ;    half-bound,  with  gilt 
top,  gs.  net. 


DRIVING.  By  His  Grace  the  (Eighth) 
DUKE  of  BEAUFORT,  K.G.  With  Contribu- 
tions by  A.  E.  T.  WATSON  the  EARL  OF 
ONSLOW,  etc.  With  12  Plates  and  54  Illus- 
trations in  the  Text.  Crown  8vo.,  cloth,  6s. 
net ;  half-bound,  %vith  gilt  top,  gs.  net. 


FENCING,  BOXING,  AND 
WRESTLING.  By  WALTER  H.  POLLOCK, 
F.  C.  GROVE,  C.  PREVOST,  E.  B.  MITCHELL, 
and  WALTER  ARMSTRONG.  With.  18  Plates 
and  24  Illustrations  in  the  Text.  Crown 
8vo.,  cloth,  6s.  net;  half-bound,  with  gilt 
top,  gs.  net. 


FISHING. 

PENNELL. 


By  H.  CHOLMONDELEY- 


Vol.  I.  SALMON  AND  TROUT.  With 
Contributions  by  H.  R.  FRANCIS,  Major 
JOHN  P.  TRAHERNE,  etc.  With  g  Plates 
and  numerous  Illustrations  of  Tackle,  etc. 
Crown  8vo.,  cloth,  6s.  net ;  half-bound, 
with  gilt  top,  gs.  net. 

Vol.  II.  PIKE  AND  OTHER  COARSE 
FISH.  With  Contributions  by  the 
MARQUIS  OF  EXETER,  WILLIAM  SENIOR, 
G.  CHRISTOPHER  DAVIS,  etc.  With 
7  Plates  and  numerous  Illustrations  01 
Tackle,  etc.  Crown  8vo.,  cloth,  6s.  net ; 
half-bound,  with  gilt  top,  gs.  net. 

FOOTBALL.  HISTORY,  by  MON- 
TAGUE SHEARMAN  ;  THE  ASSOCIATION 
GAME,  by  W.  J.  OAKLEY  and  G.  O.  SMITH  ; 
THE  RUGBY  UNION  GAME,  by  FRANK 
MITCHELL.  With  other  Contributions  by 
R.  E.  MACNAGHTEN,  M.  C.  KEMP,  J.  E. 
VINCENT,  WALTER  CAMP  and  A.  SUTHER- 
LAND. With  ig  Plates  and  35  Illustrations 
in  the  Text.  Crown  8vo.,  cloth,  6s.  net ; 
half-bound,  with  gilt  top,  gs.  net. 

GOLF.  By  HORACE  G.  HUTCHINSON. 
With  Contributions  by  the  Rt.  Hon.  A.  J. 
BALFOUR.M. P.,  Sir  WALTER  SIMPSON,  Bart., 
ANDREW  LANG,  etc.  With  34  Plates  and  56 
Illustrations  in  the  Text.  Crown  8vo.,  cloth, 
6s.  net;  half-bound,  with  gilt  top,  gs.  net. 

HUNTING.  By  His  Grace  the 
(Eighth)  DUKE  OF  BEAUFORT,  K.G.,  and 
MOWBRAY  MORRIS.  With  Contributions  by 
the  EARL  OF  SUFFOLK  AND  BERKSHIRE, 
Rev.  E.  W.  L.  DAVIES,  G.  H.  LONGMAN, 
etc.  With  5  Plates  and  54  Illustrations  in 
the  Text.  Crown  8vo.,  cloth,  6s.  net ;  half- 
bound,  with  gilt  top,  gs.  net. 

MOTORS  AND  MOTOR-DRIV- 
ING. By  ALFRED  C.  HARMSWORTH,  the 
MARQUIS  DE  CHASSELOUP-LAUBAT,  the 
Hon.  JOHN  SCOTT-MONTAGU,  R.  J.  ME- 
CREDY,  the  Hon.  C.  S.  ROLLS,  Sir  DAVID 
SALOMONS,  Bart.,  etc.  With  13  Plates  and 
136  Illustrations  in  the  Text.  Crown  8vo., 
cloth,  gs.  net;  half-bound,  I2S.  net. 
A  Cloth  Box  for  use  when  Motoring,  2s.  net. 


i4        MESSRS.   LONGMANS  &  CO.'S  STANDARD  AND  GENERAL  WORKS. 


Sport  and  Pastime — continued. 

THE   BADMINTON    LIBRARY— continued. 

Edited  by  HIS  GRACE  THE  (EIGHTH)  DUKE  OF  BEAUFORT,  K.G., 
and  A.  E.  T.  WATSON. 


MOUNTAINEERING.  By  C.  T. 
DENT.  With  Contributions  by  the  Right 
Hon.  J.  BRYCE,  M.P.,  Sir  MARTIN  CONWAY, 
D.  W.  FRESHFIELD,  C.  E.  MATTHEWS,  etc. 
With  13  Plates  and  gi  Illustrations  in  the 
Text.  Crown  8vo.,  cloth,  65.  net ;  half- 
bound,  with  gilt  top,  gs.  net. 

POETRY  OF  SPORT  (THE).— 
Selected  by  HEDLEY  PEEK.  With  a 
Chapter  on  Classical  Allusions  to  Sport  by 
ANDREW  LANG,  and  a  Special  Preface  to 
the  BADMINTON  LIBRARY  by  A.  E.  T. 
WATSON.  With  32  Plates  and  74  Illustra- 
tions in  the  Text.  Crown  8vo.,  cloth,  6s. 
net ;  half-bound,  with  gilt  top,  95.  net. 

RACING  AND  STEEPLE- CHAS- 
ING. By  the  EARL  OF  SUFFOLK  AND 
BERKSHIRE,  W.  G.  CRAVEN,  the  Hon.  F. 
LAWLEY,  ARTHUR  COVENTRY,  and  A.  E.  T. 
WATSON.  With  Frontispiece  and  56  Illus- 
trations in  the  Text.  Crown  8vo.,  cloth,  65. 
net ;  half-bound,  with  gilt  top,  gs.  net. 

RIDING  AND  POLO.  By  Captain 
ROBERT  WEIR,  J.  MORAY  BROWN,  T.  F. 
DALE,  THE  LATE  DUKE  OF  BEAUFORT,  THE 
EARL  OF  SUFFOLK  AND  BERKSHIRE,  etc. 
With  18  Plates  and  41  Illusts.  in  the  Text. 
Crown  8vo.,  cloth,  6s.  net ;  half-bound, 
with  gilt  top,  gs.  net. 

ROWING.  By  R.  P.  P.  ROWE  and 
C.  M.  PITMAN.  With  Chapters  on  Steering 
by  C.  P.  SEROCOLD  and  F.  C.  BEGG  ;  Met- 
ropolitan Rowing  by  S.  LE  BLANC  SMITH  ; 
and  on  PUNTING  by  P.  W.  SQUIRE.  With 
75  Illustrations.  Crown  8vo.,  cloth,  6s.  net ; 
half-bound,  with  gilt  top,  gs.  net. 

SHOOTING. 

Vol.  I.  FIELD  AND  COVERT.  By  LORD 
WALSINGHAM  and  Sir  RALPH  PAYNE- 
GALLWEY,  Bart.  With  Contributions  by 
the  Hon.  GERALD  LASCELLES  and  A.  J. 
STUART- WORTLEY.  With  n  Plates  and 
95  Illustrations  in  the  Text.  Crown  Svo., 
cloth,  65.  net ;  half-bound,  with  gilt  top, 
95.  net. 

Vol.  II.  MOOR  AND  MARSH.  By 
LORD  WALSINGHAM  and  Sir  RALPH  PAYNE- 
GALLWEY,  Bart.  With  Contributions  by 
LORD  LOVAT  and  Lord  CHARLES  LENNOX 
KERR.  With  8  Plates  and  57  Illustrations 
in  the  Text.  Crown  8vo.,  cloth,  6s.  net ; 
half-bound,  with  gilt  top,  gs.  net. 


SEA  FISHING.  By  JOHN  BICKER- 
DYKE,  Sir  H.  W.  GORE-BOOTH,  ALFRED 
C.  HARMSWORTH,  and  W.  SENIOR.  With  22 
Full-page  Plates  and  175  Illusts.  in  the  Text. 
Crown  8vo.,  cloth,  6s.  net;  half-bound,- with 
gilt  top,  gs.  net. 


SKATING,  CURLING,  TOBOG- 
GANING. By  J.  M.  HEATHCOTE,  C.  G. 
TEBBUTT,  T.  MAXWELL  WITHAM,  Rev. 
JOHN  KERR,  ORMOND  HAKE,  HENRY  A. 
BUCK,  etc.  With  12  Plates  and  272  Illus- 
trations in  the  Text.  Crown  8vo.,  cloth,  6s. 
net ;  half-bound,  with  gilt  top,  gs.  net. 


SWIMMING.  By  ARCHIBALD  SIN- 
CLAIR and  WILLIAM  HENRY,  Hon.  Sees,  of  the 
Life-Saving  Society.  With  13  Plates  and  112 
Illustrations  in  the  Text.  Crown  8vo.,  cloth, 
6s.  net ;  half-bound,  with  gilt  top,  gs.  net. 


TENNIS,  LA  WN  TENNIS, 
RACKETS  AND  FIVES.  By  J.  M.  and 
C.  G.  HEATHCOTE,  E.  O.  PLEYDELL-BOU- 
VERiE,andA.C.AiNGER.  With  Contributions 
by  the  Hon.  A.  LYTTELTON,  W.  C.  MAR- 
SHALL, Miss  L.  DOD,  etc.  With  14  Plates  and 
65  Illustrations  in  the  Text.  Crown  8vo., 
cloth,  6s.  net ;  half-bound,  with  gilt  top, 
gs.  net. 

YACHTING. 

Vol.  I.  CRUISING,  CONSTRUCTION 
OF  YACHTS,  YACHT  RACING 
RULES,  FITTING-OUT,  etc.  By  Sir 
EDWARD  SULLIVAN,  Bart.,  THE  EARL  OF 
PEMBROKE,  LORD  BRASSEY,  K.C.B.,  C. 
E.  SETH-SMITH,  C.B.,  G.  L.  WATSON,  R. 
T.  PRITCHETT,  E.  F.  KNIGHT,  etc.  With 
21  Plates  and  93  Illustrations  in  the 
Text.  Crown  8vo.,  cloth,  6s.  net ;  half- 
bound,  with  gilt  top,  gs.  net. 

Vol.  II.  YACHT  CLUBS,  YACHT- 
ING IN  AMERICA  AND  THE 
COLONIES,  YACHT  RACING,  etc. 
By  R.  T.  PRITCHETT,  THE  MARQUIS  OF 

DUFFERIN  AND  AVA,  K.P.,  THE    EARL  OF 

ONSLOW,  JAMES  MCFERRAN,  etc.  With 
35  Plates  and  160  Illustrations  in  the 
Text.  Crown  8vo.,  cloth,  gs.  net;  half- 
bound,  with  gilt  top,  gs.  net. 


MESSRS.  LONGMANS  &  CO.'S  STANDARD  AND  GENERAL  WORKS. 


Sport  and  Pastime — continued. 
FUR,   FEATHER,   AND   FIN   SERIES. 

Edited  by  A.  E.  T.  WATSON. 

Crown  8vo.,  price  $s.  each  Volume,  cloth. 

\*  The  Volumes  are  also  issued  half-bound  in  Leather,  with  gilt  top.     Price  75.  6d.  net  each. 


THE  PARTRIDGE.  Natural  His- 
tory, by  the  Rev.  H.  A.  MACPHERSON  ; 
Shooting,  by  A.  J.  STUART-WORTLEY  ; 
Cookery,  by  GEORGE  SAINTSBURY.  With 
ii  Illustrations  and  various  Diagrams. 
Crown  8vo.,  55. 

THE  GRO  USE.  Natural  History,  by 
the  Rev.  H.  A.  MACPHERSON  ;  Shooting, 
by  A.  J.  STUART-WORTLEY;  Cookery,  by 
GEORGE  SAINTSBURY.  With  13  Illustrations 
and  various  Diagrams.  Crown  8vo.,  55. 

THEPHEASANT.  Natural  History, 
by  the  Rev.  H.  A.  MACPHERSON  ;  Shooting, 
by  A.  J.  STUART-WORTLEY  ;  Cookery,  by 
ALEXANDER  INNES  SHAND.  With  10  Illus- 
trations and  various  Diagrams.  Crown 
8vo.,  5*. 

THE  HARE.  Natural  History,  by 
the  Rev.  H.  A.  MACPHERSON  ;  Shooting, 
by  the  Hon.  GERALD  LASCELLES  ;  Coursing, 
by  CHARLES  RICHARDSON  ;  Hunting,  by  J. 
S.  GIBBONS  and  G.  H.  LONGMAN  ;  Cookery, 
by  Col.  KENNEY  HERBERT.  With  9 
Illustrations.  Crown  8vo.,  55. 


RED  DEER.— Natural  History,  by 
the  Rev.  H.  A.  MACPHERSON  ;  Deer  Stalk- 
ing, by  CAMERON  OF  LOCHIEL  ;  Stag 
Hunting,  by  Viscount  EBRINGTON  ; 
Cookery,  by  ALEXANDER  INNES  SHAND. 
With  10  Illustrations.  Crown  8vo.,  55. 

THE  SALMON.    By  the  Hon.  A.  E. 

GATHORNE-HARDY.  With  Chapters  on  the 
Law  of  Salmon  Fishing  by  CLAUD  DOUGLAS 
PENNANT;  Cookery,  by  ALEXANDER  INNES 
SHAND.  With  8  Illustrations.  Cr.  8vo.,  55, 

THE  TROUT.  By  the  MARQUESS 
OF  GRANBY.  With  Chapters  on  the  Breed- 
ing of  Trout  by  Col.  H.  CUSTANCE  ;  and 
Cookery,  by  ALEXANDER  INNES  SHAND. 
With  12  Illustrations.  Crown  8vo. ,  55. 

THE  RABBIT.  By  JAMES  EDMUND 
HARTING.  Cookery,  by  ALEXANDER  INNES 
SHAND.  With  10  Illustrations.  Cr.  8vo.,  55. 

PIKE  AND  PERCH.  By  WILLIAM 
SENIOR  ('  Redspinner,'  Editor  of  the 
'  Field ').  With  Chapters  by  JOHN  BICKER- 
DYKE  and  W.  H.  POPE  ;  Cookery,  by 
ALEXANDER  INNES  SHAND.  With  12  Il- 
lustrations. Crown  8vo.,  55. 


Alverstone   and  Alcock. — SURREY 

CRICKET:  its  History  and  Associations. 
Edited  by  the  Right  Hon.  LORD  ALVER- 
STONE, L.C.J.,  President,  and  C.W.  ALCOCK, 
Secretary,  of  the  Surrey  County  Cricket 
Club.  With  48  Illustrations.  8vo.,  i6s.  net. 

Bickerdyke. — DAYS  OF  MY  LIFE  ON 
WATER,  FRESH  AND  SALT.;  and  other 
Papers.  By  JOHN  BICKERDYKE.  With 
Photo-etching  Frontispiece  and  8  Full-page 
Illustrations.  Crown  8vo.,  35.  6d. 

Blackburne.  —  MR.  BLACKBURNE s 
GAMES  AT  CHESS.  Selected,  Annotated 
and  Arranged  by  Himself.  Edited,  with  a 
Biographical  Sketch  and  a  brief  History  of 
Blindfold  Chess,  by  P.  ANDERSON  GRAHAM. 
With  Portrait  of  Mr.  Blackburne.  8vo., 
75.  6d.  net. 

Dead  Shot  (The) :  or,  Sportsman's 
Complete  Guide.  Being  a  Treatise  on  the  Use 
of  the  Gun,  with  Rudimentary  and  Finishing 
Lessons  in  the  Art  of  Shooting  Game  of  all 
kinds.  Also  Game-driving,  Wildfowl  and 
Pigeon-shooting,  Dog-breaking,  etc.  By 
MARKSMAN.  With  numerous  Illustrations. 
Crown  8vo.,  105.  6d. 


Ellis. — CHESS  SPARKS  ;  or,  Short  and 
Bright  Games  of  Chess.  Collected  and 
Arranged  by  J.  H.  ELLIS,  M.A.  8vo.,  45.  6d. 

Folkard. — THE  WILD-FOWLER  :  A 
Treatise  on  Fowling,  Ancient  and  Modern, 
descriptive  also  of  Decoys  and  Flight-ponds, 
Wild-fowl  Shooting,  Gunning-punts,  Shoot- 
ing-yachts, etc.  Also  Fowling  in  the  Fens 
and  in  Foreign  Countries,  Rock-fowling, 
etc.,  etc.,  by  H.  C.  FOLKARD.  With  13  En- 
gravings on  Steel,  and  several  Woodcuts. 
8vo.,  1 25.  6d. 

Ford. — THE  THEORY  AND  PRACTICE 
OF  ARCHERY.  By  HORACE  FORD.  New 
Edition,  thoroughly  Revised  and  Re-written 
by  W.  BUTT,  M.A.  With  a  Preface  by  C. 
J.  LONGMAN,  M.A.  8vo.,  145. 

Francis. — A  BOOK  ON  ANGLING  :  or, 

Treatise  on  the  Art  of  Fishing  in  every 
Branch  ;  including  full  Illustrated  List  of  Sal- 
mon Flies.  By  FRANCIS  FRANCIS.  With  Por- 
trait and  Coloured  Plates.  Crown  8vo.,  155. 

Fremantle.  —  THE  BOOK  OF  THE 
RIFLE.  By  the  Hon.  T.  F.  FREMANTLE, 
V.D.,  Major,  ist  Bucks  V.R.C.  With  54 
Plates  and  107  Diagrams  in  the  Text.  8vo., 
I2S.  6d.  net. 


ifi 


MESSRS.  LONGMANS  &  CO.'S  STANDARD  AND  GENERAL  WORKS. 


Sport  and  Pastime — continued. 


Gathorne  -  Hardy.  —  AUTUMNS  IN 
ARGYLESHIRE  WITH  ROD  AND  GUN.  By 
the  Hon.  A.  E.  GATHORNE-HARDY.  With 
8  Illustrations  by  ARCHIBALD  THORBURN. 
8vo.,  6s.  net. 

Graham. — COUNTRY  PASTIMES  FOR 
BOYS.  By  P.  ANDERSON  GRAHAM.  With 
252  Illustrations  from  Drawings  and 
Photographs.  Cr.  8vo.,  gilt  edges,  35.  net. 

Hutchinson. —  THE  BOOK  OF  GOLF 
AND  GOLFERS.  By  HORACE  G.  HUTCHIN- 
SON. With  Contributions  by  Miss  AMY 
PASCOE,  H.  H.  HILTON,  J.  H.  TAYLOR,  H. 
J.  WHIGHAM,  and  Messrs.  SUTTON  &  SONS. 
With  71  Portraits  from  Photographs.  Large 
crown  8vo.,  gilt  top,  75.  6d.  net. 

Lang1. — ANGLING     SKETCHES.       By 

ANDREW    LANG.      With     20    Illustrations. 
Crown  8vo.,  35.  6d. 

Lillie. — CROQUET  UP  TO  DA  TE.  Con- 
taining the  Ideas  and  Teachings  of  the 
Leading  Players  and  Champions.  By  AR- 

*  THUR  LILLIE.  With  Contributions  by 
Lieut.-Col.  the  Hon.  H.  NEEDHAM,  C.  D. 
LOCOCK,  etc.  With  19  Illustrations  (15 
Portraits),  and  numerous  Diagrams.  8vo., 
IDS.  6d.  net. 

Locock. — SIDE  AND  SCREW:  being 
Notes  on  the  Theory  and  Practice  of  the 
Game  of  Billiards.  By  C.  D.  LOCOCK. 
With  Diagrams.  Crown  8vo.,  55.  net. 

Longman. — CHESS  OPENINGS.  By 
FREDERICK  W.  LONGMAN.  Fcp.  8vo.,  25.  6d, 

Mackenzie. — NOTES  FOR  HUNTING 
MEN.  By  Captain  CORTLANDT  GORDON 
MACKENZIE.  Crown  8vo.,  25.  6d.  net. 

Madden. — THE  DIARY  OF  MASTER 
WILLIAM  SILENCE  :  a  Study  of  Shakespeare 
and  of  Elizabethan  Sport.  By  the  Right 
Hon.  D.  H.  MADDEN,  Vice-Chancellor  of  the 
University  of  Dublin.  8vo.,  gilt  top,  i6s. 

Maskelyne. — SHARPS  AND  FLATS  :  a 
Complete  Revelation  of  the  Secrets  of 
Cheating  at  Games  of  Chance  and  Skill.  By 
JOHN  NEVIL  MASKELYNE,  of  the  Egyptian 
Hall.  With  62  Illustrations.  Crown  8vo.,  6s. 

Millais  (JOHN  GUILLE). 

THE  WILD- FOWLER  IN  SCOTLAND. 
With  a  Frontispiece  in  Photogravure  by 
Sir  J.  E.  MILLAIS,  Bart.,  P.R.A.,  8  Photo- 
gravure Plates,  2  Coloured  Plates  and  50 
Illustrations  from  the  Author's  Drawings 
and  from  Photographs.  Royal  410.,  gilt 
top,  305.  net. 


Millais  (JOHN  GUILLE) — continued. 
THE  NATURAL  HISTORY  OF  THE 
BRITISH  SURFACE -FEEDING  DUCKS. 
With  6  Photogravures  and  66  Plates  (41 
in  Colours)  from  Drawings  by  the  Author, 
ARCHIBALD  THORBURN,  and  from  Photo- 
graphs. Royal  4to.,cloth,gilt  top,  £6  6s.net. 

Modern  Bridge.— By 'Slam'.  With 

a  Reprint  of  the  Laws  of  Bridge,  as  adopted 
by  the  Portland  and  Turf  Clubs.  i8mo., 
gilt  edges,  35.  6d.  net. 

Park. — THE  GAME  OF  GOLF.  By 
WILLIAM  PARK,  Jun.,  Champion  Golfer, 
1887-89.  With  17  Plates  and  26  Illustra- 
tions in  the  Text.  Crown  8vo.,  75.  6d. 

Payne-Gallwey  (Sir  RALPH,  Bart.). 

THE  CROSS-BOW  :  Mediaeval  and 
Modern  ;  Military  and  Sporting  ;  its 
Construction,  History  and  Management, 
with  a  Treatise  on  the  Balista  and  Cata- 
pult of  the  Ancients.  With  220  Illustra- 
tions. Royal  410.,  £3  35.  net. 

LETTERS  TO  YOUNG  SHOOTERS  (First 
Series).  On  the  Choice  and  use  of  a  Gun. 
With  41  Illustrations.  Crown  8vo.,  75.  6d. 

LETTERS  TO  YOUNG  StfooTEKs(Second 
Series).  On  the  Production,  Preservation, 
and  Killing  of  Game.  With  Directions 
in  Shooting  Wood-Pigeons  and  Breaking- 
in  Retrievers.  With  Portrait  and  103 
Illustrations.  Crown  8vo.,  i2s.  6d. 

LETTEXS  TO  YOUNG  SHOOTERS. 
(Third  Series.)  Comprising  a  Short 
Natural  History  of  the  Wildfowl  that 
are  Rare  or  Common  to  the  British 
Islands,  with  complete  directions  in 
Shooting  Wildfowl  on  the  Coast  and 
Inland.  With  200  Illustrations.  Crown 
8vo.,  1 8s. 
Pole. — THE  THEORY  OF  THE  MODERN 

SCIENTIFIC  GAME  OF  WHIST.   By  WILLIAM 

POLE,  F.R.S.     Fcp.  8vo.,  gilt  edges,  2s.  net. 

Proctor. — How    TO   PLAY    WHIST: 

WITH     THE     LAWS    AND     ETIQUETTE    OF 

WHIST.  By  RICHARD  A.  PROCTOR.  Crown 
8vo.,  gilt  edges,  35.  net. 

Ronalds. — THE  FLY-FISHER'S  ENTO- 
MOLOGY. By  ALFRED  RONALDS.  With  20 
coloured  Plates.  8vo.,  145. 

Selous. — SPORT  AND  TRAVEL,  EAST 
AND  WEST.  By  FREDERICK  COURTENEY 
SELOUS.  With  18  Plates  and  35  Illustra- 
tions in  the  Text.  Medium  8vo.,  i2S.  6d.  net. 

Warner. — CRICKET  IN  A  USTRALASIA  : 
being  Record  of  the  Tour  of  the  English 
Team,  1902-3.  By  PELHAM  F.  WARNER. 
With  numerous  Illustrations  from  Photo- 
graphs. Crown  8vo. 


MESSRS.  LONGMANS  &  co.'s  STANDARD  AND  GENERAL  WORKS.      17 


Mental,  Moral,  and  Political  Philosophy. 

LOGIC,  RHETORIC,  PSYCHOLOGY,  &>C. 


Abbott. — THE  ELEMENTS  OF  LOGIC. 
By  T.  K.  ABBOTT,  B.D.     i2mo.,  35. 

Aristotle. 

THE  ETHICS:  Greek  Text,  Illustrated 
with  Essay  and  Notes.  By  Sir  ALEXAN- 
DER GRANT,  Bart.  2  vols.  8vo.,  325. 

AN  INTRODUCTION  TO  ARISTOTLE'S 
ETHICS.  Books  I.-IV.  (BookX.  c.vi.-ix. 
in  an  Appendix).  With  a  continuous 
Analysis  and  Notes.  By  the  Rev.  E. 
MOORE,  D.D.  Crown  8vo.,  ios.  6d. 

Bacon  (FRANCIS). 

COMPLETE  WORKS.  Edited  by  R.  L. 
ELLIS,  JAMES  SPEDDING  and  D.  D. 
HEATH.  7  vols.  8vo.,  £3  135.  6d. 

LETTERS  AND  LIFE,  including  all  his 
occasional    Works.      Edited    by    JAMES 
.     SPEDDING.     7  vols.     8vo.,  £4  45. 

THE  ESSA  YS:  with  Annotations.  By 
RICHARD  WHATELY,  D.D.  8vo.,  ios.  6d. 

THE  ESSAYS:  with  Notes.  By  F. 
STORR  and  C.  H.  GIBSON.  Cr.  8vo.,  35.  6d. 

THE  ESSAYS:  with  Introduction, 
Notes,  and  Index.  By  E.  A.  ABBOTT,  D.D. 
2  Vols.  Fcp.8vo.,6s.  The  Text  and  Index 
only,  without  Introduction  and  Notes,  in 
One  Volume.  Fcp.  8vo.,  is.  6d. 

Bain  (ALEXANDER). 

MENTAL  AND  MORAL  SCIENCE  :  a 
Compendium  of  Psychology  and  Ethics. 
Crown  8vo.,  ios.  6d. 

Or  separately, 
Part  I.  PSYCHOLOGY  AND  HISTORY  OF 

PHILOSOPHY.     Crown  8vo.,  6s.  6d. 
Part  II.  THEORY  OF  ETHICS  AND  ETHICAL 
SYSTEMS.    Crown  8vo.,  45.  6d. 

LOGIC.  Parti.  DEDUCTION.  Cr.  8vo., 
4$.  Part  II.  INDUCTION.  Cr.  8vo.,  65. 6d. 

THE  SENSES  AND  THE  INTELLECT. 
8vo.,  155. 

THE  EMOTIONS  AND  THE  WILL 
8vo.,  155. 

PRACTICAL  ESSAYS.    Cr.  8vo.,  2s. 

DISSERTATIONS  ON  LEADING  PHILO- 
SOPHICAL TOPICS.  8vo. 


Baldwin. — A  COLLEGE  MANUAL  OF 
RHETORIC.  By  CHARLES  SEARS  BALDWIN. 
A.M.,  Ph.D.  Crown  8vo.,  45.  6d. 


Brooks. — THE  ELEMENTS  OF  MIND  : 

being  an  Examination  into  the  Nature  of 
the  First  Division  of  the  Elementary  Sub- 
stances of  Life.  By  H.  JAMYN  BROOKS. 
8vo.,  ios.  6d.  net. 


Brough. — THE  STUDY  OF  MENTAL 
SCIENCE:  Five  Lectures  on  the  Uses  and 
Characteristics  of  Logic  and  Psychology. 
By  J.  BROUGH,  LL.D.  Crown  8vo,  2s.  net. 


Crozier  (JOHN  BEATTIE). 

CIVILISATION  AND  PROGRESS  :  being 
the  Outlines  of  a  New  System  of  Political, 
Religious  and  Social  Philosophy.  8vo.,i4S. 

HISTORY  OF  INTELLECTUAL  DEVEL- 
O/W.E.WT:ontheLinesofModernEvolution. 

Vol.  I.     8vo.,  145. 
Vol.11.     (In  preparation.) 
Vol.  III.     8vo.,  ios.  6d. 


Davidson. — THE  LOGIC  OF  DEFINI- 
TION, Explained  and  Applied.  By  WILLIAM 
L.  DAVIDSON,  M.A.  Crown  8vo.,  6s. 


Green  (THOMAS  HILL). — THE  WORKS 
OF.     Edited  by  R.  L.  NETTLESHIP. 

Vols.  I.  and  II.  Philosophical  Works.     8vo. 
i6s.  each. 

Vol.  III.  Miscellanies.  With  Index  to  the 
three  Volumes,  and  Memoir.  8vo.,  2is. 

LECTURES  ON  THE  PRINCIPLES  OF 
POLITICAL  OBLIGATION.  With  Preface 
by  BERNARD  BOSANQUET.  8vo.,  5$. 


Gurnhill. — THE  MORALS  OF  SUICIDE. 
By  the  Rev.  J.  GURNHILL.  B.A.  Vol.  I., 
Crown  8vo.,  55.  net.  Vol.  II.,  Crown  8vo., 
5s.  net. 


i8        MESSRS.  LONGMANS  &  CO.'S  STANDARD  AND  GENERAL  WORKS. 


Mental,  Moral  and  Political  Philosophy — continued. 

LOGIC,   RHETORIC,    PSYCHOLOGY,    &>C. 


Hodgson  (SHADWORTH  H.), 
TIME  AND  SPACE  :  A  Metaphysical 

Essay.     8vo.,  165. 
THE    THEORY    OF   PRACTICE:     an 

Ethical  Inquiry.     2  vols.     8vo.,  245. 
THE  PHILOSOPHY  OF  REFLECTION. 

2  VOls.       8VO.,  215. 

THE  METAPHYSIC  OF  EXPERIENCE. 
Book  I.  General  Analysis  of  Experience  ; 
Book  II.  Positive  Science;  Book  III. 
Ana  ysis  of  Conscious  Action  ;  Book  IV. 
The  Real  Universe.  4  vols.  8vo.,  365.  net. 

Hume.  —  THE  PHILOSOPHICAL  WORKS 
OF  DAVID  HUME.  Edited  by  T.  H.  GREEN 
and  T.  H.  GROSE.  4  vols.  8vo.,  285.  Or 
separately,  ESSAYS.  2  vols.  145.  TREATISE 
OF  HUMAN  NATURE.  2  vols.  145. 

James  (WILLIAM,  M.D.,  LL.D.). 

THE  WILL  TO  BELIEVE,  and  Other 
Essays  in  Popular  Philosophy.  Crown 
8vo.,  js.  6d.  ~~  | 

THE  VARIETIES  OF  RELIGIOUS  Ex-  '. 
PBRIENCE  :   a  Study  in  Human  Nature. 
Being  the  Gifford   Lectures   on  Natural  i 
Religion  delivered  at  Edinburgh  in  rgoi-  j 
1902.     8vo.,  i2s.  net. 

TALKS  TO  TEACHERS  ON  PSYCHO- 
LOGY, AND  TO  STUDENTS  ON  SOME  OF 
LIFE'S  IDEALS.  Crown  8vo. ,  45.  6d. 

Justinian. —  THE  INSTITUTES  OF 
JUSTINIAN:  Latin  Text,  chiefly  that  oi 
Huschke,  with  English  Introduction,  Trans- 
lation, Notes,  and  Summary.  By  THOMAS 
C.  SANDARS,  M.A.  8vo.,  i8s. 

Kant  (IMMANUEL). 

CRITIQUE  OF  PRACTICAL  REASON, 
AND  OTHER  WORKS  ON  THE  THEORY  OP 
ETHICS.  Translated  by  T.  K.  ABBOTT, 
B.D.  With  Memoir.  8vo.,  123.  6d. 

FUNDAMENTAL  PRINCIPLES  OF  THE 
METAPHYSIC  OF  E  THICS.  Translated  b> 
T.  K.  ABBOTT,  B.D.  Crown  bvo,  35. 

INTRODUCTION  TO  LOGIC,  AND  HIS 
ESSAY  ON  THE  MISTAKEN  SUBTILTY  Of 
THE  FOUR  FIGURES.  Translated  by  T. 
K.  ABBOTT.  8vo.,  6s 

Kelly. — GOVERNMENT  OR  HUMAN 
EVOLUTION.  By  EDMOND  KELLY,  M.A., 
F.G.S.  Vol.  I.  Justice.  Crown  8vo.,  75.  6d. 
net.  Vol.  II.  Collectivism  and  Individualism. 
Crown  8vo.,  IDS.  6d.  net. 

K  i  1 1  i  c  k. — HANDBOOK  TO  MILL'S 
SYSTEM  OF  LOGIC.  By  Rev.  A.  H. 
KILLICK,  M.A.  Crown  8vo.,  35.  6d. 


Ladd  (GEORGE  TRUMBULL). 

PHILOSOPHY  OF  CONDUCT:  a  Treatise 
of  the  Facts,  Principles  and  Ideals  of 
Ethics.  8vo.,  2H. 

ELEMENTS  OF  PHYSIOLOGICAL  PSY- 
CHOLOGY. 8vo.,  215. 

OUTLINES  OF  DESCRIPTIVE  PSYCHO- 
LOGY: a  Text-Book  of  Mental  Science  for 
Colleges  and  Normal  Schools.  8vo.,  125. 

OUTLINES  OF  PHYSIOLOGICAL  PSY- 
CHOLOGY. 8VO.,  125. 

PRIMER  OF  PSYCHOLOGY.  Cr.  8vo., 
55.  6d. 

Lecky(WiLLiAM  EDWARD  HARTPOLE). 

THE  MAP  OF  LIFE  :  Conduct  and 
Character.  Crown  8vo.,  55.  net. 

HISTORY  OF  EUROPEAN  MORALS 
FROM  AUGUSTUS  TO  CHARLEMAGNE.  2 
vols.  Crown  8vo.,  xos.  net. 

A  SURREY  OF  ENGLISH  ETHICS  : 
being  the  First  Chapter  of  W.  E.  H. 
Lecky's  '  History  of  European  Morals '. 
Edited,  with  Introduction  and  Notes,  by 
W.  A.  HIRST.  Crown  8vo.,  35.  6d.  , 

HISTORY  OF  THE  RISE  AND  INFLU- 
ENCE OF  THE  SPIRIT  OF  RATIONALISM 
IN  EUROPE.  2  vols.  Cr.  8vo.,  105.  net. 

DEMOCRACY  AND  LIBERTY. 

Library  Edition.     2  vols.     8vo.,  365.        ' 
Cabinet  Edition.  2  vols.  Cr.  8vo.,  IDS.  net. 

Lutoslawski. — THE  ORIGIN  AND 
GROWTH  OF  PLATO'S  LOGIC.  With  an 
Account  of  Plato's  Style  and  of  the  Chrono- 
logy of  his  Writings.  By  WINCENTY 
LUTOSLAWSKI.  8vo.,  215. 

Max  Miiller  (F.). 

THE  SCIENCE  OF  THOUGHT.   8vo.,2is. 

THE  Six  SYSTEMS  OF  INDIAN  PHIL- 
OSOPHY. 8vo.,  1 8s. 

THREE  LECTURES  ON  THE  VEDANTA 
PHILOSOPHY.  Crown  8vo.,  55. 

Mill  (JOHN  STUART). 

A  SYSTEM  OF  LOGIC.   Cr.  8vo.,  35.  6d. 

ON  LIBERTY.     Crown  8vo.,  15.  4^. 

CONSIDERATIONS  ON  REPRESENTA- 
TIVE GovERNMEbT.  Crown  8vo.,  25. 

UTILITARIANISM.     8vo.,  2s.  6d. 

EXAMINATION  OF  SIR  WILLIAM 
HAMILTON'S  PHILOSOPHY.  8vo.,  165. 

NATURE,  THE  UTILITY  OF  RELIGION, 
AND  THEISM.  Three  Essays.  8vo.,  55. 


MESSRS.  LONGMANS  &  CO.'S  STANDARD  AND  GENERAL  WORKS.         19 


Mental,  Moral,  and  Political  Philosophy — continued. 

LOGIC,  RHETORIC,  PSYCHOLOGY,  &>C. 

Thomas.  —  INTUITIVE    SUCGES  TION. 

By  J.  W.  THOMAS,  Author  of  Spiritual  Law 
in  the  Natural  World,'  etc.  Crown  8vo., 
35.  6d.  net. 


Mo  nek. — AN  INTRODUCTION  TO 
LOGIC.  By  WILLIAM  HENRY  S.  MONCK, 
M.A.  Crown  8vo.,  55. 

Myers. — HUMAN  PERSONALITY  AND 
ITS  SURVIVAL  OF  BODILY  DEATH.  By 
FREDERIC  W.  H.  MYERS.  2  vols.  8vo., 
425.  net. 

Pierce. — STUDIES  IN  AUDITORY  AND 
VISUAL  SPACE  PERCEPTION:  Essays  on 
Experimental  Psychology.  By  A.  H. 
PIERCE.  Crown  8vo.,  6s.  6d.  net. 

Richmond. — THE  MIND  OF  A  CHILD. 

By  ENNIS  RICHMOND.    Cr.  8vo.,  35.  6d.  net. 

Romanes. — MIND  AND  MOTION  AND 
MONISM.  By  GEORGE  JOHN  ROMANES, 
Cr.  8vo.,  45.  6d. 

Sully  QAMES). 

AN  ESSAY  ON  LAUGHTER:  its 
Forms,  its  Cause,  its  Development  and 
its  Value.  8vo.,  ias.  6d.  net. 

THE  HUMAN  MIND  :  a  Text- book  of 
Psychology.  2  vols.  8vo.,  2is. 

OUTLINES  OF  PSYCHOLOGY.  Crown 
8vo.,  gs. 

THE  TEACHER'S  HANDBOOK  OF  PSY- 
CHOLOGY. Crown  8vo.,  6s.  6d. 

STUDIESOF  CHILDHOOD.  8vo.,ios.6d. 

CHILDREN'S  WAYS:  being  Selections 
from  the  Author's  '  Studies  of  Childhood  '. 
With  25  Illustrations.  Crown  8vo.,  45.  6d. 

Sutherland.  —  THE  ORIGIN  AND 
GROWTH  OF  THE  MORAL  INSTINCT.  By 
ALEXANDER  SUTHERLAND,  M.A.  2  vols. 
8vo.,  285. 

Swinburne.  —  PICTURE  LOGIC  :  an 
Attempt  to  Popularise  the  Science  of 
Reasoning.  By  ALFRED  JAMES  SWINBURNE. 
M.A.  With  23  Woodcuts.  Cr.  8vo.,  2s.  6d. 


Webb. — THE  VEIL  OF  Is  is  :  a  Series 
of  Essays  on  Idealism.  By  THOMAS  E. 
WEBB,  LL.D.,  Q.C.  8vo.,  105.  f>d. 

Weber. — HISTORY  OF  PHILOSOPHY 
By  ALFRED  WEBER,  Professor  in  the  Uni 
versity  of  Strasburg.  Translated  by  FRANK 
THILLY,  Ph.D.  Svo.,  i6s. 

Whately  (Archbishop). 

BACON'S  ESSAYS.  With  Annotations. 
8vo.,  i  os.  6d. 

ELEMENTS  OF  LOGIC.  Cr.  8vo.,  45.  6d. 
ELEMENTS  OF  RHETORIC.     Cr.  8vo., 

45.  6d. 

Zeller  (Dr.  EDWARD). 

THE  STOICS,  EPICUREANS,  AND 
SCEPTICS.  Translated  by  the  Rev.  O.  J. 
REICHEL,  M.A.  Crown  Svo.,  155. 

OUTLINES  OF  THE  HISTOKY  ot 
GREEK  I'HILOSOPHY.  Translated  by 
SARAH  F.  ALLEVNE  and  EVELYN  ABBOTT, 
M.A.,  LL.D.  Crown  8vo.,  los.  fid. 

PLATO  AND  THE  OLDER  ACADEMY. 
Translated  by  SARAH  F.  ALLEYNE  and 
ALFRED  GOODWIN,  B.A.  Crown  Svo.,  i8j. 

SOCRATES  AND  THE  SOCRATIC 
SCHOOLS.  Translated  by  the  Rev.  O. 
J.  REICHEL,  M.A.  Crown  8vo.,  105.  bd. 

ARISTOTLE  AND  THE  EARLIER  PERI- 
PATETICS. Translated  by  B.  F.  C.  Cos- 
TELLOE,  M.A.,  and  J.  H.  MUIRHEAD, 
M.A.  2  vols.  Crown  Svo.,  245. 


STONYHUXST  PHILOSOPHICAL   SERIES. 


A  MANUAL  OF  POLITICAL  ECONOMY. 
By  C.  S.  DEVAS,  M.A.     Crown  8vo.,  75.  6d. 

FIRST  PRINCIPLES    OF    KNOWLEDGE. 
By  JOHN  RICKABY,  S.J.     Crown  8vo.,  55. 

GENERAL   METAPHYSICS.      By  JOHN 
RICKABY,  S.J.     Crown  8vo.,  55. 

LOGIC.     By  RICHARD  F.  CLARKE,  S.J. 
Crown  8vo.,  55. 


MORAL  PHILOSOPHY  (ETHICS  AND 
NA  TURAL  LA  w}.  By  JOSEPH  RICKABY,  S.J . 
Crown  8vo.,  55. 

NATURAL  THEOLOGY.  By  BERNARD 
BOEDDER,  S.J.  Crown  8vo.,  65.  fid. 


PSYCHOLOGY.      By  MICHAEL  MAKER, 
S.J.,  D.Litt.,  M.A.  (Lond.).    Cr.  8vo.,  6$.  6<i. 


20        MESSRS.  LONGMANS  &  CO.'S  STANDARD  AND  GENERAL  WORKS. 


History  and  Science  of  Language,  &e. 


Davidson.— LEADING  AND  IMPORT- 
ANT ENGLISH  WORDS  :  Explained  and  Ex- 
emplified. By  WILLIAM  L.  DAVIDSON, 
M.A.  Fcp.  8vo.,  35.  6d. 

Farrar. — LANGUAGE  AND  LANGUAGES. 
By  F.  W.  FARRAR,  D.D.,  late  Dean  of 
Canterbury.  Crown  8vo.,  6s. 

Graham.  —  ENGLISH    SYNONYMS, 

Classified   and    Explained :    with    Practical 
Exercises.  By  G.  F.  GRAHAM.  Fcp.  8vo.,  6s. 

Max  Mtiller  (F.). 

THE  SCIENCE  OF  LANGUAGE.    2  vols. 
Crown  8vo.,  IDS. 


Max  Miiller  (F.) — continued. 

BIOGRAPHIES  of  WORDS,  AND  THE 
HOME  OF  THE  ARYAS.  Crown  8vo.,  55. 

CHIPS  FROM  A  GERMAN  WORKSHOP. 
Vol.  III.  ESSAYS  ON  LANGUAGE  AND 
LITERATURE.  Crown  8vo.,  55. 

LAST  ESSAYS.  First  Series.  Essays 
on  Language,  Folk-lore  and  other  Sub- 
jects. Crown  8vo.,  55. 

Roget. — THESAURUS  OF  ENGLISH 
WORDS  AND  PHRASES.  Classified  and 
Arranged  so  as  to  Facilitate  the  Expression 
of  Ideas  and  assist  in  Literary  Composition. 
By  PETER  MARK  ROGET,  M.D.,  F.R.S. 
With  full  Index.  Crown  8vo.,  gs.  net. 


Political  Economy  and  Economics. 


Ashley  (W.J.). 

ENGLISH  ECONOMIC  HISTORY  AND 
THEORY.  Crown  8vo.,  Part  I.,  55.  Part 
II.,  IGS.  6d. 

SURVEYS,  HISTORIC  AND  ECONOMIC. 
Crown  8vo.,  gs.  net. 

THE  ADJUSTMENT  OF  WAGES  :  a 
Study  on  the  Coal  and  Iron  Industries  of 
Great  Britain  and  the  United  States. 
With  4  Maps.  8vo. 

Bagehot. — ECONOMIC  STUDIES.  By 
WALTER  BAGEHOT.  Crown  8vo.,  35.  6d. 

Barnett. — PRACTICABLE  SOCIALISM  : 

Essays  on  Social  Reform.     By  SAMUEL  A. 
and  HENRIETTA  BARNETT.    Crown  8vo.,  6s. 

Devas. — A  MANUAL  OF  POLITICAL 
ECONOMY.  By  C.  S.  DEVAS,  M.A.  Cr.  8vo., 
75.  6d.  (Stonyhurst  Philosophical  Scries.) 

Dewey. — FINANCIAL  HISTORY  OF  THE 
UNITED  STATES.  By  DAVIS  RICH  DEWEY. 
Crown  8vo.,  75.  6d.  net. 

Lawrence. — LOCAL    VARIATIONS   IN 

WAGES.    By  F.  W.  LAWRENCE,  M.A.   With 
Index  and  18  Maps  and  Diagrams.  4to.,8s.6d. 

Leslie. — ESSAYS  ON  POLITICAL  ECO- 
NOMY. By  T.  E.  CLIFFE  LESLIE,  Hon. 
LL.D.,  Dubl.  8vo.,  los.  6d. 


Macleod  (HENRY  DUNNING). 
BIMETALLISM.     8vo.,  55.  net. 

THE  ELEMENTS  OF  BANKING. 
gyp., «.  Qd: 


Cr. 


Macleod  (HENRY  DUNNING) — contd. 

THE  THEORY  AND  PRACTICE  OF 
BANKING.  Vol.  I.  8vo.,  i2s.  Vol.  II.  145. 

THE  THEORY  OF  CREDIT.  8vo. 
In  i  Vol.,  305.  net;  or  separately,  Vol. 
I.,  los.  net.  Vol.  II.,  Part  L,  los.  net. 
Vol  II.,  Part  II.  IDS.  net. 

INDIAN  CURRENCY.  8vo.,  25.  6d.  net. 

Mill. — POLITICAL  ECONOMY.  By 
JOHN  STUART  MILL.  Popular  Edition.  Cr. 
8vo.,3s.6d.  Library  Edition.  2  vols.  8vo.,3os. 

Mulhall. — INDUSTRIES  AND  WEALTH 
OF  NATIONS.  By  MICHAEL  G.  MULHALL, 
F.S.S.  With  32  Diagrams.  Cr.  8vo.,  8s.  6d. 

Symes.  —  POLITICAL    ECONOMY  :    a 

Short  Text-book  of  Political  Economy. 
With  Problems  for  Solution,  Hints  for 
Supplementary  Reading,  and  a  Supple- 
mentary Chapter  on  Socialism.  By  J.  E. 
SYMES,  M.A.  Crown  8vo.,  2s.  6d. 

Toynbee. — LECTURES  ON  THE  IN- 
DUSTRIAL REVOLUTION  OF  THE  18rn  CEN- 
TURY IN  ENGLAND.  By  ARNOLD  TOYNBEE. 
8vo.,  IDS.  6d. 

Webb  (SIDNEY  and  BEATRICE). 

THE  HISTORY  OF  TRADE  UNIONISM. 
With  Map  and  Bibliography.  8vo.,  75.  6d. 
net. 

INDUSTRIAL  DEMOCRACY:  a  Study 
in  Trade  Unionism.  2  vols.  8vo.,  125.  net. 

PROBLEMS  OF  MODERN  INDUSTRY, 
8vo..  55.  neti 


MESSRS.  LONGMANS  &  CO.'S  STANDARD  AND  GENERAL  WORKS.        21 


Evolution,  Anthropology,  &e. 


Avebury. — THE  ORIGIN  OF  CIVILISA- 
TION, and  the  Primitive  Condition  of  Man. 
By  the  Right  Hon.  LORD  AVEBURY.  With 
6  Plates  and  20  Illustrations.  8vo.,  185. 

Clodd  (EDWARD). 

THE  STORY  OF  CREATION:  a  Plain 
Account  of  Evolution.  With  77  Illustra- 
tions. Crown  8vo.,  35.  6d. 
A  PRIMER  OF  EVOLUTION :  being  a 
Popular  Abridged  Edition  of  '  The  Story 
of  Creation '.  With  Illustrations.  Fcp. 
8vo.,  is.  6d. 

Lang     and     Atkinson.  --  SOCIAL 

ORIGINS.  By  ANDREW  LANG,  M.A.,  LL.D.  ; 
and  PRIMAL  LAW.  By  J.  J.  ATKINSON. 
8vo.,  i  os.  6d.  net. 

Packard. — LAMARCK,  THE  FOUNDER 

OF  EVOLUTION:  his  Life  and  Work,  with 
Translations  of  his  Writings  on  Organic 
Evolution.  By  ALPHEUS  S.  PACKARD, 
M.D.,  LL.D.  With  10  Portrait  and  other 
Illustrations.  Large  Crown  8vo.,  gs.  net. 


Romanes  (GEORGE    JOHN). 

ESSA  vs.  Ed.  by  C.  LLOYD  MORGAN. 
Crown  8vo.,  5$.  net. 

AN  EXAMINATION  OF  WEISMANN- 
ISM.  Crown  8vo.,  6s. 

DARWIN,  AND  AFTER  DARWIN:  an 
Exposition  of  the  Darwinian  Theory,  and  a 
Discussion  on  Post-Darwinian  Questions. 

Part  I.  THE  DARWINIAN  THEORY.  With 
Portrait  of  Darwin  and  125  Illustrations. 
Crown  8vo.,  IDS.  6d. 

Part  II.  POST-DARWINIAN  QUESTIONS  : 
Heredity  and  Utility.  With  Portrait  of 
the  Author  and  5  Illustrations.  Cr.  8vo., 
ros.  6d. 

Part  III.  Post- Darwinian  Questions : 
Isolation  and  Physiological  Selection. 
Crown  8vo.,  55. 


The  Science  of 

Balfour.  --  THE  FOUNDATIONS  OF 
BELIEF  ;  being  Notes  Introductory  to  the 
Study  of  Theology.  By  the  Right  Hon. 
ARTHUR  JAMES  BALFOUR.  Cr.  8vo.,  6s.  net. 

Baring-Gould. — THE  ORIGIN  AND 
DEVELOPMENT  OF  RELIGIOUS  BELIEF. 
By  the  Rev.  S.  BARING-GOULD.  2  vols. 
Crown  8vo.,  35.  6d.  each. 

Campbell. — RELIGION  IN  GREEK  LI- 
TERATURE. By  the  Rev.  LEWIS  CAMPBELL, 
M.A.,  LL.D.  8vo.,  155. 

Davidson. — THEISM,  as  Grounded  in 
Human  Nature,  Historically  and  Critically 
Handled.  Being  the  Burnett  Lectures 
for  1892  and  1893,  delivered  at  Aberdeen. 
By  W.  L.  DAVIDSON,  M.A.,  LL.D.  8vo.,  155. 

James. —  THE  VARIETIES  OF  RE- 
LIGIOUS EXPERIENCE  :  a  Study  in  Human 
Nature.  Being  the  Gifford  Lectures  on 
Natural  Religion  delivered  at  Edinburgh  in 
1901-1902.  By  WILLIAM  JAMES,  LL.D., 
etc.  8vo.,  i2s.  net. 

Lang  (ANDREW). 
MAGIC  AND  RELIGION.  8vo.,  105.  6d. 

CUSTOM  AND  MYTH:  Studies  of 
Early  Usage  and  Belief.  With  15 
Illustrations.  Crown  8vo.,  35.  6d. 

MYTH,  RITUAL,  AND  RELIGION.  2 
vols.  Crown  8vo.,  75. 


Religion,  &e. 

Lang  (ANDREW) — continued. 
MODERN  MYTHOLOGY  :   a  Reply  to 
Professor  Max  Miiller.     8vo.,  gs. 

THE  MAKING  OF  RELIGION.  Cr.  8vo., 
55.  net. 

Leighton. — TYPICAL  MODERN  CON- 
CEPTIONS OF  GOD;  or,  The  Absolute  of 
German  Romantic  Idealism  and  of  English 
Evolutionary  Agnosticism.  By  JOSEPH 
ALEXANDER  LEIGHTON,  Professor  of  Philo- 
sophy in  Hobart  College,  U.S.  Crown  8vo., 
35.  6d.  net. 

Max  Miiller  (The  Right  Hon.  F.). 

THE  SlLESIAN  HORSEHERD  ('  DAS 
PFERDEBURLA  ') :  Questions  of  the  Day 
answered  by  F.  MAX  MULLER.  Trans- 
lated by  OSCAR  A.  FECHTER,  Mayor  of 
North  Jakima,  U.S.A.  With  a  Preface 
by  J.  ESTLIN  CARPENTER. 

CHIPS  FROM  A  GERMAN  WORKSHOP. 
Vol.  IV.  Essays  on  Mythology  and  Folk- 
lore. Crown  8vo.,  55. 

THE  Six  SYSTEMS  OF  INDIAN 
PHILOSOPHY.  8vo.,  i8s. 

CONTRIBUTIONS  TO  THE  SCIENCE  OF 
MYTHOLOGY.  2  vols.  8vo.,  325. 

THE  ORIGIN  AND  GROWTH  OF  RELI- 
GION, as  illustrated  by  the  Religions  of 
India.  The  Hibbert  Lectures,  delivered 
at  the  Chapter  House,  Westminster 
Abbey,  in  1878.  Crown  8vo.,  5$. 


22        MESSRS.  LONGMANS  &  CO.'S  STANDARD  AND  GENERAL  WORKS. 


The  Science  of  Religion,  &e.— continued. 

Max  Muller  (The  Right  Hon.  F.)—    Max  Muller  (The  Right  Hon.  F.)— 

continued.  continued. 

THREE  LECTURES  ON  THE  VEDANTA 
PHILOSOPHY,  delivered  at  the  Royal 
Institution  in  March,  1894.  Cr.  8vo.,  55. 

LAST  ESSAYS.  Second  Series — 
Essays  on  the  Science  of  Religion. 
Crown  8vo.,  55. 

Oakesmith.  —  THE     RELIGION    OF 

PLUTARCH:  a  Pagan  Creed  of  Apostolic 
Times.  An  Essay.  By  JOHN  OAKESMITH, 
D.Litt.,  M.A.  Crown  8vo.,  55.  net. 

Wood-Martin  (W.  G.). 

TRACES  OF  THE  ELDER  FAITHS  OF 
IRELAND  :  a  Folk-lore  Tketch.  A  Hand- 
book of  Irish  Pre-Ch  !stian  Traditions. 
With  192  Illustrations.  2  vols.  8vo., 
305.  net. 

PAGAN  IRELAND  :  an  Archaeological 
Sketch.  A  Handbook  of  Irish  Pre- 
Christian  Antiquities.  With  512  Illus- 
trations. 8vo.,  155. 


INTRODUCTION  TO  THE  SCIENCE  OF 
RELIGION  :  Four  Lectures  delivered  at  the 
Royal  Institution.  Crown  8vo.,  55. 

NATURAL  RELIGION.  The  Gifford 
Lectures,  delivered  before  the  University 
of  Glasgow  in  1888.  Crown  8vo.,  5$. 

PHYSICAL  RELIGION.  The  Gifford 
Lectures,  delivered  before  the  University 
of  Glasgow  in  1890.  Crown  8vo.,  55. 

ANTHROPOLOGICAL  RELIGION.  The 
Gifford  Lectures,  delivered  before  the  Uni- 
versity of  Glasgow  in  1891.  Cr.  8vo.,  55. 

THEOSOPHY,  OR  PSYCHOLOGICAL  RE- 
LIGION. The  Gifford  Lectures,  delivered 
before  the  University  of  Glasgow  in  1892. 
Crown  8vo.,  55. 


Classical  Literature,  Translations,  &e. 


Abbott.  —  HELLENICA.  A  Collection 
of  Essays  on  Greek  Poetry,  Philosophy, 
History,  and  Religion.  Edited  by  EVELYN 
ABBOTT,  M.A.,  LL.  D.  Crown  8vo.,  75.  6d. 


yEschylus.  —  EUMENIDES  OF 

LUS.     With   Metrical  English  Translation. 
By  J.  F.  DAVIES.     8vo.,  75. 

Aristophanes.  —  THE    ACHARNIANS 

OF  ARISTOPHANES,  translated  into  English 
Verse.    By  R.  Y.  TYRRELL.    Crown  8vo.,  15. 

Becker  (W.  A.),  Translated  by  the 
Rev.  F.  METCALFE,  B.D. 

GALLUS  :  or,  Roman  Scenes  in  the 
Time  of  Augustus.  With  Notes  and  Ex- 
cursuses. With  26  Illustrations.  Crown 
8vo.,  35.  6d.  * 

CHARICLES:  or,  Illustrations  ot  the 
Private  Life  of  the  Ancient  Greeks. 
With  Notes  and  Excursuses.  With  26 
Illustrations.  Crown  8vo.,  35.  6rf. 

Campbell.  —  RELIGION  IN  GREEK  LI- 
TERATURE. By  the  Rev.  LEWIS  CAMPBELL, 
M.A.,  LL.D.,  Emeritus  Professor  of  Greek, 
University  of  St.  Andrews.  8vo.,  155. 

Cicero.  —  CICERO'S  CORRESPONDENCE. 
By  R.  Y.  TYRRELL.  Vols.  I.,  II.,  III.,  8vo., 
each  I2s.  Vol.  IV.,  155.  Vol.  V.,  145. 
V01,  VI.,  i2s.  Vol.  VII.  Index,  75.  6d. 


Harvard    Studies    in     Classical 

Philology.  Edited  by  a  Committee  of  the 
Classical  Instructors  of  Harvard  University. 
Vols.  XL,  1900  ;  XII.,  1901  ;  XIII.,  1902. 
8vo.,  6s.  6d.  net  each. 

Hime. — LUCIAN,  THE  SYRIAN  SA- 
TIRIST. By  Lieut.-Col.  HENRY  W.  L.  HIME, 
(late)  Royal  Artillery.  8vo.,  55.  net. 

Homer.  —  THE  ODYSSEY  OF  HOMER. 
Done  into  English  Verse.  By  WILLIAM 
MORRIS.  Crown  8vo.,  55.  net. 

Horace. — THE   WORKS  OF  HORACE, 

RENDERED  INTO  ENGLISH  PROSE.  With 
Life,  Introduction  and  Notes.  By  WILLIAM 
COUTTS,  M.A.  Crown  8vo.,  55.  net. 

Lang. — HOMER  AND  THE  EPIC.  By 
ANDREW  LANG.  Crown  8vo.,  95.  net. 

L  u  c  i  a  n.  -  -  TRANSLA  TIONS  FROM 
LUCIAN.  By  AUGUSTA  M.  CAMPBELL 
DAVIDSON,  M.A.  Edin.  Crown  8vo.,  55.  net. 

Ogilvie. — HORAE  LATINAE  :  Studies 
in  Synonyms  and  Syntax.  By  the  late 
ROBERT  OGILVIE,  M.A.,  LL.D.,  H.M.  Chief 
Inspector  of  Schools  for  Scotland.  Edited 
by  ALEXANDER  SOUTER,  M.A.  With  a 
Memoir  by  JOSEPH  OGILVIE,  M.A.,  LL.D, 
8vo.,  125.  6d.  -net. 


MESSRS.  LONGMANS  &  CO.'S  STANDARD  AND  GENERAL  WORKS.        23 


Classical  Literature,  Translations,  &c. — continued. 


Rich. — A  DICTIONARY  OF  ROMAN  AND 
GREEK  ANTIQUITIES.  By  A.  RICH,  B.A. 
With  2000  Woodcuts.  Crown  8vo.,  6s.  net. 

Sophocles. — Translated  into  English 
Verse.  By  ROBERT  WHITELAW,  M.A., 
Assistant  Master  in  Rugby  School.  Cr.  8vo., 
Ss.  6d. 

Theophrastus. —  THE  CHARACTERS 
OF  THEOPHRASTUS  :  a  Translation,  with 
Introduction.  By  CHARLES  E.  BENNETT 
and  WILLIAM  A.  HAMMOND,  Professors  in 
Cornell  University.  Fcp.  8vo.,  2s.  6d.  net. 

Tyrrell.  —  DUBLIN  TRANSLATIONS 
INTO  GREEK  AND  LATIN  VERSE.  Edited 
by  R.  Y.  TYRRELL.  8vo.,  6s. 

Virgil. 

THE  POEMS  OF  VIRGIL.  Translated 
into  English  Prose  by  JOHN  CONINGTON. 
Crown  8vo.,  6s. 


Virgil — continued. 

THE  &NEID  OF  VIRGIL.  Translated 
into  English  Verse  by  JOHN  CONINGTON. 
Crown  8vo.,  65. 

THE  ALNEIDS  OF  VIRGIL.  Done  into 
English  Verse.  By  WILLIAM  MORRIS. 
Crown  8vo.,  55.  net. 

THE  &NEID  OF  VIRGIL,  freely  trans- 
lated into  English  Blank  Verse.  By 
W.  J.  THORNHILL.  Crown  8vo.,  6s.  net. 

THE  &NEID  OF  VIRGIL.    Translated 
into  English  Verse  by  JAMES  RHOADES. 
Books  I. -VI.     Crown  8vo.,  55. 
Books  VII.-XII.     Crown  8vo.,  55. 

THE  ECLOGUES  AND  GEORGICS  OF 
VIRGIL.  Translated  into  English  Prose 
by  J.  W.  MACKAIL,  Fellow  of  Balliol 
College,  Oxford.  i6mo.,  55. 

Wilkins. — THE    GROWTH    OF    THE 
HOMERIC  POEMS.  By  G.  WILKINS.  8vo.,6s. 


Poetry  and  the  Drama, 


Arnold. —  THE  LIGHT  OF  THE  WORLD  : 
or,  The  Great  Consummation.  By  Sir 
EDWIN  ARNOLD.  With  14  Illustrations 
after  HOLMAN  HUNT.  Crown  8vo.,  55.  net. 


Bell  (MRS.  HUGH). 

CHAMBER  COMEDIES  :  a  Collection 
of  Plays  and  Monologues  for  the  Drawing 
Room.  Crown  8vo.,  51.  net. 

FAIRY  TALE  PLAYS,  AND  How  TO 
ACT  THEM.  With  91  Diagrams  and  52 
Illustrations.  Crown  8vo.,  35.  net. 

RUMPELSTILTZKIN  .'  a  Fairy  Play  in 
Five  Scenes  (Characters,  7  Male ;  i  Fe- 
male). From  '  Fairy  Tale  Plays  and 
How  to  Act  Them  '.  With  Illustrations, 
Diagrams  and  Music.  Cr.  8vo.,  sewed,  6d. 


Bird. — RONALDS  FAREWELL,  and 
other  Verses.  By  GEORGE  BIRD,  M.A., 
Vicar  of  Bradwell,  Derbyshire.  Fcp.  8vo., 
45.  6d.  net. 


Cochrane. — COLLECTED  VERSES.  By 
ALFRED  COCHRANE,  Author  of  '  The  Kes- 
trel's Nest,  and  other  Verses,'  '  Leviore 
Plectro,'  etc.  With  a  Frontispiece  by  H.  J. 
FORD.  Fcp.  8vo. 

Dabney. —  THE  MUSICAL  BASIS  DI- 
VERSE :  a  Scientific  Study  of  the  Prin- 
ciples of  Poetic  Composition.  By  J.  P. 
DABNEY.  Crown  8vo.,  6s.  6d.  net. 

Graves.  -  -  CLYT^EMNESTRA  :  A 
TRAGEDY.  By  ARNOLD  F.  GRAVES.  With 
a  Preface  by  ROBERT  Y.  TYRRELL,  Litt.D. 
Crown  8vo.,  55.  net. 

Hither  and   Thither :    Songs  and 

Verses.      By   the   Author   of  '  Times   and 
Days,'  etc.     Fcp.  8vo.,  55. 

Ingelow  GEAN). 

POETICAL  WORKS.  Complete  in 
One  Volume.  Crown  8vo.,  gilt  top,  6s.  net. 

LYRICAL  AND  OTHER  POEMS.  Selec- 
ted from  the  Writings  of  JEAN  INGELOW. 
Fcp.  8vo.,  2s.  6d.  cloth  plain,  35.  cloth  gilt. 


24        MESSRS.  LONGMANS  &  CO.'S  STANDARD  AND  GENERAL  WORKS. 


Poetry  and   the  Drama — continued. 


Keary. — THE  BROTHERS  :    a    Fairy 
Masque.    By  C.  F.  KEARY.    Cr.  8vo.,  4$.  net. 

Lang  (ANDREW). 
GRASS  OF  PARNASSUS.     Fcp.  8vo., 

2s.  6d.  net. 

THE  BLUE  POETRY  BOOK.  Edited 
by  ANDREW  LANG.  With  100  Illustrations. 
Crown  8vo.,  gilt  edges,  65. 

Lecky. — POEMS.    By  the  Right  Hon. 
W.  E.  H.  LECKY.     Fcp.  8vo.,  55. 

Lytton     (The     Earl     of),     (OWEN 
MEREDITH). 

THE  WANDERER.    Cr.  8vo.,  105,  6d. 
LUCILE.     Crown  8vo.,  105.  6d. 
SELECTED  POEMS.   Cr.  8vo.,  105.  6d. 

Macaulay. — LA  YS  OFANCIENT  ROME, 
WITH  '  IVRY'  AND  '  THE  ARMADA  '.     By 
Lord  MACAULAY. 
Illustrated  by  G.  SCHARF.  Fcp.  4to.,  IDS.  6d. 

Bijou        Edition. 

i8mo.,  25.  6d.  gilt  top. 

—    Popular  Edition. 


Fcp.  410.,  6d.  sewed,  is.  cloth. 
Illustrated   by  J.    R.   WEGUELIN.      Crown 

8vo.,  35.  net. 
Annotated  Edition.     Fcp.  8vo.,  is.  sewed, 

is.  6d.  cloth. 

MacDonald. — A  BOOK  OF  STRIFE,  IN 

THE    FORM    OF    THE    DlARY     OF    AN   OLD 

SOUL  :    Poems.     By  GEORGE  MACDONALD, 
LL.D.     i8mo.,  6s. 

Morris  (WILLIAM). 

POETICAL  WORKS  -LIBRARY  EDITION. 
Complete  in   n  volumes.      Crown  8vo., 
price  55.  net  each. 

THE  EARTHLY  PARADISE.  4  vols. 
Crown  8vo.,  5s.  net  each. 

THE  LIFE  AND  DEA  TH  OF  JASON. 
Crown  8vo.,  y.  net. 

THE  DEFENCE  OF  GUENEVERE,  and 
other  Poems.  Crown  8vo.,  55.  net. 

THE  STORY  OF  SIGURD  THE  VOLSUNG, 
AND  THE  FALL  OF  THE  NIBLUNGS.  Cr. 
8vo.,  ss.  net. 


Morris  (WILLIAM)  —  continued. 

POEMS  BY  THE  WAY,  AND  LOVE  is 
ENOUGH.     Crown  8vo.,  55.  net. 

THE  ODYSSEY  OF  HOMER.      Done 
into  English  Verse.     Crown  8vo.,  55.  net. 


THE  ^ENEIDS   OF    VIRGIL.       Done 
into  English  Verse.     Crown  8vo.,  55.  net. 

THE  TALE  OF  BEOWULF,  SOMETIME 

KING  OF  THE  FOLK  OF  THE  WEDERGEA  TS. 

Translated  by  WILLIAM  MORRIS  and  A. 

J.  WYATT.     Crown  8vo.,  55.  net. 
Certain  of  the  POETICAL  WORKS  may  also  be 

had  in  the  following  Editions  :  — 

THE  EARTHLY  PARADISE. 

Popular  Edition.     5  vols.      I2mo.,  255.; 
or  5s.  each,  sold  separately. 

The  same  in  Ten  Parts,  255.;  or  2s.  6d- 
each,  sold  separately. 

Cheap    Edition,    in  i  vol.     Crown  8vo., 
6s.  net. 

POEMS  BY  THE  WAY.    Square  crown 
8vo.,  6s. 

%*  For    Mr.    William    Morris's    other 
Works,  see  pp.  27,  28,  37  and  40. 

Morte  Arthur:  an  Alliterative  Poem 

of  the  Fourteenth  Century.  Edited  from 
the  Thornton  MS.,  with  Introduction, 
Notes  and  Glossary.  By  MARY  MACLEOD 
BANKS.  Fcp.  8vo.,  35.  6d. 

Nesbit.  —  LA  YS  AND  LEGENDS.  By  E. 
NESBIT  (Mrs.  HUBERT  BLAND).  First 
Series.  Crown  8vo.,  35.  6d.  Second  Series. 
With  Portrait.  Crown  8vo.,  55. 

Ramal.  —  SONGS  OF  CHILDHOOD.  By 
WALTER  RAMAL.  With  a  Frontispiece 
from  a  Drawing  by  RICHARD  DOYLE.  Fcp. 
8vo.,  3s.  6d.  net. 

Riley.  —  OLD  FASHIONED  ROSES: 
Poems.  By  JAMES  WHITCOMB  RILEY. 
i2mo.,  gilt  top,  55. 

Romanes.  —  A  SELECTION  FROM  THE 
POEMS  OF  GEORGE  JOHN  ROMANES,  M.A., 
LL.D.,  F.R.S.  With  an  Introduction  by 
T.  HERBERT  WARREN,  President  of  Mag- 
dalen College,  Oxford.  Crown  8vo.,  45.  6d. 


MESSRS.  LONGMANS  &  CO.'S  STANDARD  AND  GENERAL  WORKS.        25 


Poetry  and  the  Drama — continued. 


Savage-Armstrong. — BALLADS    OF 

DOWN.      By    G.    F.   SAVAGE-ARMSTRONG, 
M.A.,  D.Litt.     Crown  8vo.,  ys.  6rf. 

Shakespeare. 

BOWDLER'S  FAMILY  SHAKESPEARE. 
With  36  Woodcuts,  i  vol.  8vo.,  145. 
Or  in  6  vols.  Fcp.  8vo.,  2  is. 

THE  SHA  KESPEA  RE  BIR  THDA  v  BOOK. 
By  MARY  F.  DUNBAR.  32mo.,  is.  6d. 

Stevenson. — A  CHILD'S  GARDEN  OF 
VERSES.  By  ROBERT  Louis  STEVENSON. 
Fcp.  8vo.,  gilt  top,  55. 


Trevelyan.— CECILIA    GONZAGA  :   a 

Drama.      By    R.    C.    TREVELYAN.      Fcp. 
8vo.,  25.  6d.  net. 


Wagner. —  THE  NIBELUNGEN  RING. 

Done  into  English  Verse  by  REGINALD 
RANKIN,  B.A.,  of  the  Inner  Temple,  Barris- 
ter-at-Law. 

Vol.  I.     Rhine  Gold,  The  Valkyrie.      Fcp. 
8vo.,  gilt  top,  45.  6d. 

Vol.    II.     Siegfried,  The   Twilight   of  th 
Gods.     Fcp.  8vo.,  gilt  top,  45.  6d. 


Fiction,   Humour,  &e. 


Anstey  (R). 

VOCES  POPULI.  (Reprinted  from 
'Punch'.) 

First  Series.  With  20  Illustrations  byj. 
BERNARD  PARTRIDGE.  Cr.  8vo.,  gilt 
top,  35.  net. 

Second  Series.  With  25  Illustrations  by  J. 
BERNARD  PARTRIDGE.  Cr.  8vo.,  gilt  top, 
35.  net. 

THE  MAN  FROM  BLANKLEY'S,  and 
other  Sketches.  (Reprinted  from  '  Punch  '.) 
With  25  Illustrations  by  J.  BERNARD 
PARTRIDGE.  Cr.  8vo.,  gilt  top,  35.  net. 

Bailey  (H.  C.). 

MY  LADY  OF  ORANGE  :  a  Romance 
of  the  Netherlands  in  the  Days  of  Alva. 
With  8  Illustrations.  Crown  8vo.,  6s. 

KARL  OF  ERBACH  :  a  Tale  of  the 
Thirty  Years'  War.  Crown  8vo.,  6s. 

Beaconsfield  (The  Earl  of). 

NOVELS  AND  TALES.  Complete 
in  ii  vols.  Crown  Svo.,  is.  6d.  each,  or 
in  sets,  11  vols.,  gilt  top,  155.  net. 


Contarini      Fleming ; 

The  Rise  of  Iskan- 

der. 
Sybil. 

Henrietta  Temple. 
Venetia. 
Coningsby. 
Lothair. 
Endymion. 

NOVELS  AND  TALES.  THE  HUGH- 
BNDEN  EDITION.  With  2  Portraits  and 
n  Vignettes.  11  vols.  Crown  8vo.,  425. 


Vivian  Grey. 

The  Young  Duke ; 
Count  Alarcos :  a 
Tragedy. 

Alroy  ;  Ixion  in 
Heaven  ;  The  In- 
fernal Marriage ; 
Popanilla. 

Tancred. 


Bottome. — LIFE,  THE  INTERPRETER. 
By  PHYLLIS  BOTTOME.  Crown  8vo.,  65. 

Churchill. — SAVROLA  :  a  Tale  of  the 
Revolution  in  Laurania.  By  WINSTON 
SPENCER  CHURCHILL,  M.P.  Cr.  8vo..  6s. 

Crawford. — THE  AUTOBIOGRAPHY  OF 
A  TRAMP.  By  J.  H.  CRAWFORD.  With  a 
Photogravure  Frontispiece  '  The  Vagrants,' 
by  FRED.  WALKER,  and  8  other  Illustra- 
tions. Crown  8vo.,  55.  net. 

Creed. — THE  VICAR  OF  ST.  LUKE'S. 
By  SIBYL  CREED.  Crown  8vo.,  6s. 

Davenport. — BY  THE  RAMPARTS  OF 
JEZREEL  :  a  Romance  of  Jehu,  King  of 
Israel.  By  ARNOLD  DAVENPORT.  With 
Frontispiece  by  LANCELOT  SPEED.  Crown 
8vo.,  6s. 

Dougall. — BEGGARS  ALL.  By  L. 
DOUGALL.  Crown  8vo.,  35.  6d. 

Doyle  (Sir  A.  CONAN). 

MICAH  CLARKE:  A  Tale  of  Mon- 
mouth's  Rebellion.  With  10  Illustra- 
tions. Cr.  8vo.,  35.  6d. 

THE   REFUGEES:     A   Tale   of    the 

Huguenots.     With  25  Illustrations.     Cr. 

8vo.,  35.  6d. 
THE  STARK  MUNRO  LETTERS.  Cr. 

8vo.,  35.  6d. 
THE  CAPTAIN  OF  THE  POLESTAR, 

and  other  Tales.     Cr.  8vo.,  3s.  6d. 


26        MESSRS.  LONGMANS  &  CO.'S  STANDARD  AND  GENERAL  WORKS. 


Author  of  'Rhymes  from  the  Mines,'  etc. 
Crown  8vo.,  6s. 


Fiction,  Humour,  &c. — continued. 

Dyson. — THE     GOLD-STEALERS  :    a  '  Haggard  (H.  RIDER) — continued. 
Story  of  Waddy.      By    EDWARD    DYSON, 

BEATRICE.  With  Frontispiece  and 
Vignette.  Crown  8vo.,  35.  6d. 

BLACK  HEART  AND  WHITE  HEART, 
AND  OTHER  STORIES.  With  33  Illustra- 
tions. Crown  8vo.,  35.  6d. 

CLEOPATRA.  With  29  Illustrations. 
Crown  8vo.,  35.  6d. 

COLONEL  QUARITCH,  V.C.  With 
Frontispiece  and  Vignette.  Cr.  8vo.,  35.  6d. 


Farrar  (F.  W.,  late  DEAN  OF  CAN- 
TERBURY). 

DARKNESS  AND  DAWN:  or,  Scenes 
in  the  Days  of  Nero.  An  Historic  Tale. 
Cr.  8vo.,  gilt  top,  6s.  net. 

GATHERING  CLOUDS  :  a  Tale  of  the 
Days  of  St.  Chrysostom.  Cr.  8vo.,  gilt 
top,  6s.  net. 


Fowler  (EDITH  H.). 

THE  YOUNG  PRETENDERS.  A  Story 
of  Child  Life.  With  12  Illustrations  by 
Sir  PHILIP  BURNE-JONES,  Bart.  Crown 
8vo.,  6s. 

THE  PROFESSOR'S  CHILDREN.  With 
24  Illustrations  by  ETHEL  KATE  BURGESS. 
Crown  8vo.,  6s. 


Francis  (M.  E.). 
FIANDER'S  WIDOW.     Cr.  8vo.,  65. 

YEOMAN  FLEETWOOD.  With  Fron- 
tispiece. Crown  8vo.,  35.  net. 

PASTORALS  OF  DORSET.  With  8 
Illustrations.  Crown  8vo.,  6s. 

THE  MANOR  FARM.  With  Frontis- 
piece by  CLAUD  C.  DU  PRE  COOPER. 
Crown  8vo.,  6s. 


Froude. — THE  Two  CHIEFS  OF  DUN- 
BOY:  an  Irish  Romance  of  the  Last  Century. 
By  JAMES  A.  FROUDE.  Cr.  8vo.,  35.  6d. 


Haggard  (H.  RIDER). 

ALLAN    QUATERMAIN.       With    31 
Illustrations.     Crown  8vo.,  35.  6d. 

ALLAN'S  WIFE.     With  34  Illustra- 
tions.   Crown  8vo.,  3s.  6d. 


DAWN. 

8vo.,  3 


With  1  6  Illustrations. 
6d. 


Cr. 


DR.  THERNE.     Crown  8vo.,  35.  6d. 

ERIC  BRIGHTEYES.  With  51  Illus- 
trations. Crown  8vo.,  35.  6d. 

HEART  OF  THE  WORLD.  With  15 
Illustrations.  Crown  8vo.,  y.  6d. 

JOAN  HASTE.  With  20  Illustrations. 
Crown  8vo.,  35.  6d. 

LYSBETH.  With  26  Illustrations. 
Crown  8vo.,  6s. 

MAIWA'S  REVENGE.    Cr.  8vo.,  is.  6d. 

MONTEZUMA'S  DAUGHTER.  With  24 
Illustrations.  Crown  8vo.  ,  y.  6d. 

MR.  MEESON'S  WILL.  With  16 
Illustrations.  Crown  8vo..  35.  6d. 

NADA  THE  LILY.  With  23  Illustra- 
tions. Crown  8vo.,  35.  6d. 

PEARL-MAIDEN:  a  Tale  of  the 
Fall  of  Jerusalem.  With  16  Illustrations. 
Crown  8vo.,  6s. 

SHE.  With  32  Illustrations.  Crown 
8vo.,  35.  6d. 


:  a  Tale  of  the  Great  Trek. 
With  8  Illustrations.     Crown  8vo.,  35.  6d. 

THE  PEOPLE  OF  THE  MIST.     With 
16  Illustrations.     Crown  8vo.,  3s.  6d. 


THE    WITCH'S  HEAD.       With 
Illustrations.     Crown  8vo.,  35.  6d. 


16 


MESSRS.  LONGMANS  &  CO.'S  STANDARD  AND  GENERAL  WORKS.         27 


Fiction,   Humour,   &c. — continued. 


Haggard  and  Lang.— THE  WORLD'S 

DESIRE.  By  H.  RIDER  HAGGARD  and 
ANDREW  LANG.  With  27  Illustrations. 
Crown  8vo.,  35.  6d. 

Harte. — IN  THE  CARQUINEZ  WOODS. 
By  BRET  HARTE.  Crown  8vo.,  35.  6d, 

Hope. — THE  HEART  OF  PRINCESS 
OSRA.  By  ANTHONY  HOPE.  With  9  Illus- 
trations. Crown  8vo.,  35.  6d. 

Howard. — THE  FAILURE  OF  SUCCESS. 

By  Lady  MABEL  HOWARD.  Crown  8vo., 
6s. 

Hutchinson. — A  FRIEND  OF  NELSON. 

By  HORACE  G.  HUTCHINSON.     Cr.  8vo.,  6s. 

Jerome. — SKETCHES  IN  LAVENDER: 
BLUE  AND  GREEN.  By  JEROME  K.  JEROME, 
Author  of  '  Three  Men  in  a  Boat,"  etc. 
Crown  8vo.,  35.  6d. 

Joyce. — OLD  CELTIC  ROMANCES. 
Twelve  of  the  most  beautiful  of  the  Ancient 
Irish  Romantic  Tales.  Translated  from  the 
Gaelic.  By  P.  W.  JOYCE,  LL.D.  Crown 
8vo.,  35.  6d. 

Lang  (ANDREW). 

A  MONK  OF  FIFE  ;  a  Story  of  the 
Days  of  Joan  of  Arc.  With  13  Illustra- 
tions by  SELWYN  IMAGE.  Crown  8vo., 
35.  6d. 

THE  DISENTANGLERS.  With  7 
Full-page  Illustrations  by  H.  J.  FORD. 
Crown  8vo.,  6s. 

Lyall  (EDNA). 
THE  HINDERERS.  Crown  8vo.,  25. 6d. 

THE  A  UTOBIOGRAPHY  OF  A  SLANDER. 

Fcp.  8vo.,  is.  sewed. 

Presentation  Edition.  With  20  Illustra- 
tions by  LANCELOT  SPEED.  Crown 
8vo.,  2s.  6d.  net. 

DOREEN.  The  Story  of  a  Singer. 
Crown  8vo.,  6s. 

WAYFARING  MEN.     Crown  8vo.,  65. 

HOPE  THE  HERMIT  :  a  Romance  of 
Borrowdale.  Crown  8vo.,  6s. 


Marchmont. — IN  THE  NAME  OF  A 

WOMAN:  a  Romance.  By  ARTHUR  W. 
MARCHMONT.  With  8  Illustrations.  Crown 
8vo.,  6s. 


Mason  and  Lang.  —PARSON KELLY. 

By  A.  E.  W.  MASON  and  ANDREW  LANG. 
Crown  8vo.,  35.  6d. 


Max  Miiller.  —  DEUTSCHE  LIEBE 
(GERMAN  LOVE]  :  Fragments  from  the 
Papers  of  an  Alien.  Collected  by  F.  MAX 
MULLER.  Translated  from  the  German  by 
G.  A.  M.  Crown  8vo.,  gilt  top,  55. 


Melville  (G.  J.  WHYTE). 


The  Gladiators. 
The  Interpreter. 
Good  for  Nothing. 
The  Queen's  Maries. 

Crown  8vo.,  is.  6d.  each. 


Holmby  House. 
Kate  Coventry. 
Digby  Grand. 
General  Bounce. 


Merriman. — FLOTSAM.-  A  Story  of 

the  Indian  Mutiny.  By  HENRY  SETON 
MERRIMAN.  With  Frontispiece  and  Vig- 
nette by  H.  G.  MASSEY.  Cr.  8vo.,  3s.  6d. 


Morris  (WILLIAM). 

THE  SUNDERING  FLOOD.  Cr.  8vo., 
7s.  6d. 

THE  WATER  OF  THE  WONDROUS 
ISLES.  Crown  8vo.,  75.  6d. 

THE  WELL  A  r  THE  WORLD'S  END. 
2  vols.  8vo.,  28s. 

THE  WOOD  BEYOND  THE  WORLD. 
Crown  8vo.,  6s.  net. 

THE  STORY  OF  THE  GLITTERING 
PLAIN,  which  has  been  also  called  The 
Land  of  the  Living  Men,  or  The  Acre  of 
the  Undying.  Square  post  8vo.,  y.  net. 

THE  ROOTS  OF  THE  MOUNTAINS, 
wherein  is  told  somewhat  of  the  Lives  of 
the  Men  of  Burgdale,  their  Friends,  their 
Neighbours,  their  Foemen,  and  their 
Fellows-in-Arms.  Written  in  Prose  and 
Verse.  Square  crown  8vo.,  8s. 


28        MESSRS.  LONGMANS  &  CO.'S  STANDARD  AND  GENERAL  WORKS. 


Fiction,    Humour,   &e. — continued. 


Morris  (WILLIAM) — continued. 

A  TALE  OF  THE  HOUSE  OF  THE 
WOLFINGS,  and  all  the  Kindreds  of  the 
Mark.  Written  in  Prose  and  Verse. 
Square  crown  8vo.,  6s. 

A  DREAM  OF  JOHN  BALL,  AND  A 
KING'S  LESSON.  i6mo.,  as.  net. 

NEWS  FROM  NOWHERE;  or,  An 
Epoch  of  Rest.  Being  some  Chapters 
from  an  Utopian  Romance.  Post  8vo., 
is.  6d. 

THE  STORY  OF  GRETTIR  THE  STRONG. 
Translated  from  the  Icelandic  by  EIRIKR 
MAGNUSSON  and  WILLIAM  MORRIS.  Cr. 
8vo. ,  55.  net. 

THREE  NORTHERN  LOVE  STORIES, 
AND  OTHER  TALES.  Translated  from  the 
Icelandic  by  EIRIKR  MAGNUSSON  and 
WILLIAM  MORRIS.  Crown  8vo.,  6s.  net. 

%*  For    Mr.    William    Morris's   other 
Works,  see  pp.  24,  37  and  40. 


Newman  (Cardinal). 

Loss  AND  GAIN:    The    Story  of  a 
Convert.     Crown  8vo.,  35.  6d. 

CALLISTA:    A   Tale   of  the   Third 
Century.     Crown  8vo.,  35.  6d. 


Phillipps-Wolley. — SNAP:  a  Legend 
of  the  Lone  Mountain.  By  C.  PHILLIPPS- 
WOLLEY.  With  13  Illustrations.  Crown 
8vo. ,  3s.  6d. 


Portman. — STA  TION  STUDIES  :  being 
the  Jottings  of  an  African  Official.  By 
LIONEL  PORTMAN.  Crown  8vo.,  55.  net. 


Sewell  (ELIZABETH  $ 

A  Glimpse  of  the  World, 
Laneton  Parsonage. 
Margaret  Percival. 
Katharine  Ashton. 
The  Earl's  Daughter. 
The  Experience  of  Life, 


Amy  Herbert, 
Cleve  Hall. 
Gertrude. 
Home  Life. 
After  Life. 
Ursula.     Ivors. 


Sheehan.  —  LUKE  DELMEGE.  By 
the  Rev.  P.  A.  SHEEHAN,  P.P.,  Author  of 
'  My  New  Curate '.  Crown  8vo.,  6s. 


Somerville 

(MARTIN). 


(E.    CE.)    and    Ross 


SOME  EXPERIENCES  OF  AN  IRISH 
R.M.  With  31  Illustrations  by  E.  CE. 
SOMERVILLE.  Crown  8vo.,  6s. 

ALL  ON  THE  IRISH  SHORE  :  Irish 
Sketches.  With  Illustrations  by  E.  CE. 
SOMERVILLE.  Crown  8vo.,  6s. 


THE    REAL     CHARLOTTE. 
8vo.,  35.  6d. 


Crown 


Cr.  8vo.,  cloth  plain,  is.  6d.  each, 
extra,  gilt  edges,  2s.  6d.  each. 


Cloth 


THE  SILVER  Fox,     Cr.  8vo.,  35.  6cl. 


Stebbing. — RACHEL  WULFSTAN,  and 
other  Stories.  By  W.  STEBBING,  author  of 
«  Probable  Tales '.  Crown  8vo.,  45.  6d. 


Stevenson  (ROBERT  Louis). 


THE  STRANGE  CASE  OF  DR.JEKYLL 
AND  MR.  HYDE.  Fcp.  8vo.,  is.  sewed, 
is.  6d.  cloth. 


THE  STRANGE  CASE  OF  DR. 
JEKYLL  AND  MR.  HYDE;  WITH  OTHER 
FABLES.  Crown  8vo.,  bound  in  buckram, 
with  gilt  top,  5s.  net. 

'  Silver  Library  '  Edition.    Crown  8vo., 
3s.  6d. 

MORE  NEW  ARABIAN  NIGHTS — THE 
DYNAMITER.  By  ROBERT  Louis  STEVEN- 
SON and  FANNY  VAN  DE  GRIFT  STEVEN- 
SON. Crown  Sivo.,  35.  6d. 


THE  WRONG  Box.  By  ROBERT 
Louis  STEVENSON  and  LLOYD  OSBOURNE. 
Crown  8vo.,  35.  6d. 


MESSRS.  LONGMANS  &  CO.'S  STANDARD  AND  GENERAL  WORKS. 


Fiction,  Humour,  &e. — continued. 


Suttner. — LAY  DOWN    YOUR   ARMS    Walford  (L.  B.) — continued. 
(Die  Waffen  Nieder) :  The  Autobiography 
of  Martha  von  Tilling.     By  BERTHA  VON 
SUTTNER.      Translated  by  T.    HOLMES. 
Cr.  8vo.,  is.  6d. 


Trollope  (ANTHONY). 
THE  WARDEN.     Cr.  8vo.,  15.  6d. 
BARCHESTER  TOWERS.  Cr.8vo.,is.6d. 

Walford  (L.  B.). 
STAY-AT-HOMES.     Crown  8vo.,  65. 
CHARLOTTE.     Crown  8vo.,  65. 
ONE  OF  OURSELVES.     Cr.  8vo.,  6s. 
THE  INTRUDERS.  Crown  8vo.,  25. 6d. 
LEDDY  MARGET.   Crown  8vo. ,  25. 6d. 

IVA  KILDARE  :  a  Matrimonial  Pro- 
blem.    Crown  8vo.,  2s.  6d. 

MR.    SMITH:   a   Part   of  his    Life. 
Crown  8vo.,  25.  6d. 

THE  BABY'S    GRANDMOTHER.     Cr. 
8vo.,  25.  6d. 

COUSINS.     Crown  8vo.,  25.  6d. 

TROUBLESOME    DAUGHTERS.        Cr. 
8vo.,  25.  fid. 

PAULINE.     Crown  8vo.,  25.  6d. 
DICK  NETHERBY.     Cr.  8vo.,  25.  6d. 

THE  HISTORY  OF  A    WEEK.      Cr. 
8vo.  2i.  6d. 

A  STIFF-NECKED  GENERATION.     Cr. 
Svo.  2.s.  6d. 

NAN,  and  other  Stories.     Cr.  8vo., 
2s.  6d. 


THE  MISCHIEF  OF  MONICA. 
8vo.,  25.  6d. 


THE  ONE  GOOD  GUEST.     Cr.  8vo. 

25.  6d. 

'  PLOUGHED]     and     other     Stories. 
Crown  8vo.,  25.  6d. 

THE  MA  TCHMA  KER  .    C  r .  8 vo . ,  25.  6d* 


Ward. — ONE   POOR    SCRUPLE.      By 

Mrs.  WILFRID  WARD.     Crown  8vo.,  65. 


Weyman  (STANLEY). 

THE  HOUSE  OF  THE  WOLF.  With 
Frontispiece  and  Vignette.  Crown  Svo.,. 
35.  6d. 

A  GENTLEMAN  OF  FRANCE.  With 
Frontispiece  and  Vignette.  Cr.  8vo.,  65. 

THE  RED  COCKADE.  With  Frontis- 
piece and  Vignette.  Crown  8vo.,  65. 

SHREWSBURY.  With  24  Illustra- 
tions by  CIAUDE  A.  SHEPPERSON.  Cr. 
8vo.,  65. 

SOPHIA.  With  Frontispiece.  Crown 
8vo.,  65. 


Yeats  (S.  LEVETT). 

THE  CHEVALIER  DAURIAC.  Crown 
8vo.,  35.  6d. 

THE  TRAITOR'S  WAY.     Cr.  8vo.,  65. 


Yoxall. — THE  ROMMANY  STONE.    By 
J.  H.  YOXALL,  M.P.     Crown  8vo.,  65. 


30        MESSRS.  LONGMANS  &  CO.'S  STANDARD  AND  GENERAL  WORKS. 


Popular  Science  (Natural  History,  &e.). 


Butler. — OUR  HOUSEHOLD  INSECTS.    Hudson  (W.  H.). 
An  Account  of  the  Insect-Pests  found  in 
Dwelling- Houses.    By  EDWARD  A.  BUTLER, 
B.A.,    B.Sc.   (Lond.).     With  113   Illustra- 
tions.    Crown  8vo.,  35.  6d. 


Furneaux  (W.). 


THE  OUTDOOR  WORLD;  or  The 
Young  Collector's  Handbook.  With  18 
Plates  (16  of  which  are  coloured),  and  549 
Illustrations  in  the  Text.  Crown  8vo., 
gilt  edges,  65.  net. 


BUTTERFLIES  AND  MOTHS  (British). 
With  12  coloured  Plates  and  241  Illus- 
trations in  the  Text.  Crown  8vo.,  gilt 
edges,  6s.  net. 


LIFE  IN  PONDS  AND  STREAMS. 
With  8  coloured  Plates  and  331  Illustra- 
tions in  the  Text.  Crown  8vo.,  gilt 
edges,  6s.  net. 


Hartwig  (GEORGE). 


THE  SEA  AND  ITS  LIVING  WONDERS. 
With  12  Plates  and  303  Woodcuts.  8vo., 
gilt  top,  js.  net. 

THE  TROPICAL  WORLD.  With  8 
Plates  and  172  Woodcuts.  8vo.,  gilt 
top,  75.  net. 


THE  POLAR  WORLD.  With  3  Maps, 
8  Plates  and  85  Woodcuts.  8vo.,  gilt 
top,  75.  net. 


THE  SUBTERRANEAN  WORLD.  With 
3  Maps  and  80  Woodcuts.  8vo.,  gilt 
top,  75.  net. 


Helmholtz. — POPULAR  LECTURES  ON 
SCIENTIFIC  SUBJECTS.  By  HERMANN  VON 
HELMHOLTZ.  With  68  Woodcuts.  2  vols. 
Cr.  8vo.,  35.  6d.  each. 


HAMPSHIRE  DAYS.      With  numer- 
ous    Illustrations     from     Drawings    by 


BRYAN  HOOK,  etc.     8vo.,  IDS.  6d.  net. 


BIRDS  AND  MAN. 

8vo.,  6s.  net. 


Large    crown 


NATURE  IN  DOWNLAND.  With  12 
Plates  and  14  Illustrations  in  the  Text  by 
A.  D.  McCoRMiCK.  8vo.,  IDS.  6d.  net. 

BRITISH  BIRDS.  With  a  Chapter 
on  Structure  and  Classification  by  FRANK 
E.  BEDDARD,  F.R.S.  With  16  Plates  (8 
of  which  are  Coloured),  and  over  100  Illus- 
trations in  the  Text.  Crown  8vo.,  gilt 
edges,  6s.  net. 


Millais. — THE  NATURAL  HISTORY  OF 
THE  BRITISH  SURFACE  FEEDING-DUCKS. 
By  JOHN  GUILLE  MILLAIS,  F.Z.S.,  etc. 
With  6  Photogravures  and  66  Plates  (41  in 
Colours)  from  Drawings  by  the  Author, 
ARCHIBALD  THORBURN,  and  from  Photo- 
graphs. Royal  410.,  £6  6s. 


Proctor  (RICHARD  A.). 

LIGHT  SCIENCE  FOR  LEISURE  HOURS. 
Familiar  Essays  on  Scientific  Subjects. 
Crown  8vo.,  35.  6d. 

Ro  UGH  WA  YS  MA  DE  SMOG  TH.  Fam  i  - 
liar  Essays  on  Scientific  Subjects.  Crown 
8vo.,  3*.  6d. 

PLEASANT  WAYS  IN  SCIENCE.  Crown 
8vo.,  35.  6d. 

NATURE  STUDIES.  By  R.  A.  PROC- 
TOR, GRANT  ALLEN,  A.  WILSON,  T. 
FOSTER  and  E.  CLODD.  Cr.  8vo.,  35.  6d. 

LEISURE  READINGS.  By  R.  A.  PROC- 
TOR, E.  CLODD,  A.  WILSON,  T.  FOSTER 
and  A.  C.  RANYARD.  Cr.  8vo. ,  3s.  6d. 

%*  For  Mr.  Proctor's  other  books  see  pp.  16 
and  35,  and  Messrs.  Longmans  &•  Co.'s  Cata- 
logue of  Scientific  Works. 


MESSRS.  LONGMANS  &  CO.'S  STANDARD  AND  GENERAL  WORKS.         31 


Popular    Science    (Natural  History,  &e.) — continued. 


Stanley. — A  FAMILIAR  HISTORY  OP 
BIRDS.  By  E.  STANLEY,  D.D.,  formerly 
Bishop  of  Norwich.  With  160  Illustrations. 
Cr.  8vo.,  3s.  6d. 


Wood  (Rev.  J.  G.). 

HOMES  WITHOUT  HANDS:  A  Descrip- 
tion of  the  Habitations  of  Animals,  classed 
according  to  their  Principle  of  Construc- 
tion. With  140  Illustrations.  8vo.,  gilt 
top,  ys.  net. 

INSECTS  AT  HOME  :  A  Popular  Ac- 
count of  British  Insects,  their  Structure, 
Habits  and  Transformations.  With  700 
Illustrations.  8vo.,  gilt  top,  75.  net. 


Wood  (Rev.  J.  G.) — continued. 

INSECTS  ABROAD:  A  Popular  Ac- 
count of  Foreign  Insects,  their  Structure, 
Habits  and  Transformations.  With  600 
Illustrations.  8vo.,  75.  net. 

OUT    OF  DOORS;    a    Selection    of 

Original  Articles    on   Practical    Natural 

History.  With  n  Illustrations.    Cr.  8vo., 
35.  6d. 

PETLAND  REVISITED.  With  33 
Illustrations.  Cr.  8vo.,  35.  6d. 

STRANGE  DWELLINGS:  a  Description 
of  the  Habitations  of  Animals,  abridged 
from  '  Homes  without  Hands '.  With  60 
Illustrations.  Cr.  8vo.,  35.  6d. 


Works  of  Reference. 


Gwilt. — AN  ENCYCLOPEDIA  OF  AR- 
CHITECTURE. By  JOSEPH  GWILT,  F.S.A. 
With  1700  Engravings.  Revised  (1888), 
with  Alterations  and  Considerable  Addi- 
tions by  WYATT  PAPWORTH.  8vo.,  2is. 
net. 


Longmans'  GAZETTEER  OF  THE 
WORLD.  Edited  by  GEORGE  G.  CHIS- 
HOLM,  M.A.,  B.Sc.  Imperial  8vo.,  i8s.  net 
cloth  ;  2is.  half-morocco. 


Maunder  (SAMUEL). 

BIOGRAPHICAL  TREASURY.  With 
Supplement  brought  down  to  1889.  By 
Rev.  JAMES  WOOD.  Fcp.  8vo.,  6s. 


THE  TREASURY  OF  BIBLE  KNOW- 
LEDGE. By  the  Rev.  J.  AYRE,  M.A.  With 
5  Maps,  15  Plates,  and  300  Woodcuts. 
Fcp.  8vo.,  6s. 


TREASURY  OF  KNOWLEDGE  AND  LIB- 
RARY OF  REFERENCE.    Fcp.  8vo.,  6s. 


Maunder  (SAMUEL) — continued. 


THE  TREASURY  OF  BOTANY.  Edited 
by  J.  LINDLEY,  F.R.S.,  and  T.  MOORE, 
F.L.S.  With  274  Woodcuts  and  20  Steel 
Plates.  2  vols.  Fcp.  8vo.,  i2s. 


Roget.  —  THESAURUS  OF  ENGLISH 
WORDS  AND  PHRASES.  Classified  and  Ar- 
ranged so  as  to  Facilitate  the  Expression  of 
Ideas  and  assist  in  Literary  Composition. 
By  PETER  MARK  ROGET,  M.D.,  F.R.S. 
Recomposed  throughout,  enlarged  and  im- 
proved, partly  from  the  Author's  Notes,  and 
with  a  full  Index,  by  the  Author's  Son, 
JOHN  LEWIS  ROGET.  Crown  8vo.,  gs.  net. 


TABLES  for  giving 
information  for  ascertaining  the  value  of 
Lifehold,  Leasehold,  and  Church  Property, 
the  Public  Funds,  etc.  By  CHARLES  M. 
WILLICH.  Edited  by  H.  BENCE  JONES. 
Crown  8vo.,  ros.  6d. 


32        MESSRS.  LONGMANS  &  CO.'S  STANDARD  AND  GENERAL  WORKS. 


Children's  Books. 


Adelborg. — CLEAN  PETER  AND  THE 
CHILDREN  OF  GRUBBYLEA.  By  OTTILIA 
ADELBORG.  Translated  from  the  Swedish 
by  Mrs.  GRAHAM  WALLAS.  With  23 
Coloured  Plates.  Oblong  410.,  boards, 
35.  6d.  net. 


Alick's    Adventures.  —  By    G.    R. 

With   8    Illustrations   by   JOHN    HASSALL. 
Crown  8vo.,  35.  6d. 


Brown. — THE  BOOK  OF  SAINTS  AND 
FRIENDLY  BEASTS.  By  ABBIE  FARWELL 
BROWN.  With  8  Illustrations  by  FANNY  Y. 
CORY.  Crown  8vo.,  45.  6d.  net. 


Buckland. — TWOLITTLERUNA  WA  YS. 
Adapted  from  the  French  of  Louis  DES- 
NOYERS.  By  JAMES  BUCKLAND.  With  no 
Illustrations  by  CECIL  ALDIN.  Cr.  8vo.,  6s. 


Crake  (Rev.  A.  D.). 

EDWY  THE  FAIR;  or,  The  First 
Chronicle  of  ^-scendune.  Cr.  8vo. ,  silver 
top,  25.  net. 

ALFGAR  THE  DANE  ;  or,  The  Second 
Chronicle  of  .flSscendune.  Cr.  8vo.,  silver 
top,  2s.  net. 

THE  RIVAL  HEIRS  :  being  the  Third 
and  Last  Chronicle  of  ^Escendune.  Cr. 
8vo.,  silver  top,  is.  net. 

THE  HOUSE  OP  WALDERNE.  A  Tale 
of  the  Cloister  and  the  Forest  in  the  Days 
of  the  Barons'  Wars.  Crown  8vo.,  silver 
top,  2s.  net. 

BRIAN  FITZ- COUNT.  A  Story  of 
Wallingford  Castle  and  Dorchester 
Abbey.  Cr.  8vo.,  silver  top,  2s.  net. 


Henty  (G.  A.). — EDITED  BY. 

YULE  LOGS  :  A  Story-Book  for  Boys. 
By  VARIOUS  AUTHORS.  With  61  Illus- 
trations. Crown  8vo.,  gilt  edges,  35.  net. 

YULE  TIDE  YARNS:  a  Story-Book 
for  Boys.  By  VARIOUS  AUTHORS.  With 
45  Illustrations.  Cr.  8vo.,  gilt  edges,  35. 
net. 


Lang  (ANDREW). — EDITED  BY. 

THE  BL  UE  FA  IR  Y  BOOK.  With  1 3  8 
Illustrations.  Crown  8vo.,  gilt  edges,  6s. 

ThE  RED  FAIRY  BOOK.  With  100 
Illustrations.  Crown  8vo.,  gilt  edges,  6s. 

THE  GREEN  FA  IR  Y  BOOK.  With  99 
Illustrations.  Crown  8vo.,  gilt  edges,  6s. 

THE  GREY  FAIRY  BOOK.  With  65 
Illustrations.  Crown  8vo.,  gilt  edges,  6s. 

THE  YELLOW  FAIRY  BOOK.  With 
104  Illustrations.  Cr.  8vo.,  gilt  edges,  6s. 

THE  PINK  FAIRY  BOOK.  With  67 
Illustrations.  Crown  8vo.,  gilt  edges,  6s. 

THE  VIOLET  FAIRY  BOOK.  With  8 
Coloured  Plates  and  54  other  Illustrations. 
Crown  8vo.,  gilt  edges,  6s. 

THE  BL  UE  POETR  Y  BOOK.  With  i  oo 
Illustrations.  Crown  8vo.,  gilt  edges,  6s. 

THE  TRUE  STORY  BOOK.  With  66 
Illustrations.  Crown  8vo.,  gilt  edges,  6s. 

THE  RED  TRUE  STORYBOOK.  With 
zoo  Illustrations.  Cr.  8vo.,  gilt  edges,  6s. 

THE  ANIMAL  STORY  BOOK.  With 
67  Illustrations.  Cr.  8vo.,  gilt  edges,  6s. 

THE  RED  BOOK  OF  ANIMAL  STORIES. 
With  65  Illustrations.  Crown  8vo.,  gilt 
edges,  6s. 

THE  ARABIAN  NIGHTS  ENTERTAIN- 
MENTS. With  66  Illustrations.  Cr.  8vo., 
gilt  edges,  6s. 

THE  BOOK  OF  ROMANCE.  With  8 
Coloured  Plates  and  44  other  Illustrations. 
Crown  8vo.,  gilt  edges,  6s. 


Lyall. — THE  SURGES  LETTERS  :  a 
Record  of  Child  Life  in  the  Sixties.  By 
EDNA  LYALL.  With  Coloured  Frontispiece 
and  8  other  Full-page  Illustrations  by 
WALTER  S.  STACEY.  Crown  8vo.,  as.  6d. 


Meade  (L.  T.). 

DADDY'S  BOY.   With  8  Illustrations. 

Crown  8vo.,  gilt  edges,  33.  net. 
DEB  AND  THE  DUCHESS.     With  7 

Illustrations.    Cr.  8vo.,  gilt  edges,  35.  net. 
THE  BERESFORD  PRIZE.      With  7 

Illustrations.     Cr.  8vo.,  gilt  edges,  35.  net. 
THE  HOUSE  OF  SURPRISES.    With  6 

Illustrations.     Cr.  8vo.,  gilt  edges,  y.  net. 


MESSRS.  LONGMANS  &  CO.'S  STANDARD  AND  GENERAL  WORKS.        33 


Children's  Books — continued. 


Murray.  —  FLOWER  LEGENDS  FOR 
CHILDREN.  By  HILDA  MURRAY  (the  Hon. 
Mrs.  MURRAY  of  Elibank).  Pictured  by  J. 
S.  ELAND.  With  numerous  Coloured  and 
other  Illustrations.  Oblong  410.,  6s. 

Penrose.  — -  CHUBBY  :  A*$NUISANCE. 
By  Mrs.  PENROSE.  With  8,  Illustrations 
by  G.  G.  MANTON.  Crown  8vo.,  35.  6d. 

Praeger  (ROSAMOND). 

THE  ADVENTURES  OF  TK*.  THREE 
BOLD  BABES:  HECTOR,  HONORIA  AND 
ALISANDER.  A  Story  in  Pictures.  With 
24  Coloured  Plates  and  24  Outline  Pic- 
tures. Oblong  4to.,  35.  6d. 

THE  FURTHER  DOINGS  OF  THE  THREE 
BOLD  BABES.  With  24  Coloured  Pictures 
and  24  Outline  Pictures.  Oblong  4to.,3s.6<f . 

Roberts.  —  THE  ADVENTURES  OF 
CAPTAIN  JOHN  SMITH  :  Captain  of  Two 
Hundred  and  Fifty  Horse,  and  sometime 
President  of  Virginia.  By  E.  P.  ROBERTS. 
With  17  Illustrations  and  3  Maps.  Crown 
8vo.,  55.  net. 

Stevenson. — A  CHILD'S  GARDEN  OF 
VERSES.  By  ROBERT  Louis  STEVENSON. 
Fcp.  8vo.,  gilt  top,  55. 

Tappan. — OLD  BALLADS  IN  PROSE. 
By  EVA  MARCH  TAPPAN.  With  4  Illus- 
trations by  FANNY  Y.  CORY.  Crown  8vo., 
gilt  top,  45.  6d.  net. 


Upton  (FLORENCE  K.  AND  BERTHA). 

THE  ADVENTURES  OF  Two  DUTCH 
DOLLS  AND  A  '  GOLLIWOGG  '.  With  31 
Coloured  Plates  and  numerous  Illustra- 
tions in  the  Text.  Oblong  410.,  6s. 

THE  GOLLIWOGG 's  BICYCLE  CLUB. 
With  31  Coloured  Plates  and  numerous 
Illustrations  in  the  Text.  Oblong  410.,  6s. 

THE  GOLLIWOGG  AT  THE  SEASIDE. 
With  31  Coloured  Plates  and  numerous 
Illustrations  in  the  Text.  Oblong  410. ,  6s. 

THE  GOLLIWOGG  IN  WAR.  With  31 
Coloured  Plates.  Oblong  410.,  6s. 

THE  GOLLIWOGG'S  POLAR  ADVEN- 
TURES. With  31  Coloured  Plates.  Ob- 
long 410.,  6s. 

THE  GOLLIWOGG'S  AUTO-GO-CART. 
With  31  Coloured  Plates  and  numerous 
Illustrations  in  the  Text.  Oblong  410.,  6s. 

THE  GOLLIWOGG'S  AIR-SHIP.    With 

30  Coloured  Pictures  and  numerous  Illus- 
trations in  the  Text.     Oblong  410.,  6s. 

THE  VEGE-MEN'S  REVENGE.    'With 

31  Coloured  Plates  and  numerous  Illus- 
trations in  the  Text.     Oblong  410.,  6s. 

Wemyss. — '  THINGS  WE  THOUGHT 
OF'  :  Told  from  a  Child's  Point  of  View. 
By  MARY  C.  E.  WEMYSS,  Author  of  '  All 
About  All  of  Us  '.  With  8  Illustrations  in 
Colour  by  S.  R.  PRAEGER.  Crown  8vo., 
3s.  6d. 


The  Silver  Library. 

CROWN  8vo.     35.  6d.  EACH  VOLUME. 


Arnold's  ( Sir  Edwin)  Seas  and  Lands.     With 
71  Illustrations.     y.  6d. 

Bagehot's  i  W.I  Biographical  Studies,     y.  6d. 
Bagehot's  (W.)  Economic  Studies,     y.  6J. 

Bagehot's  (W.)  Literary  Studies.  With  Portrait. 
3  vols.,  35.  6d.  each. 

Baker's  (Sir   S.   W.)  Eight   Years  in  Ceylon. 

With  6  Illustrations,     y.  6d. 

Baker's  (Sir  S.  W.)  Rifle  and  Hound  in  Ceylon. 

With  6  Illustrations,     y.  6d. 

Baring-Gould's  (Rev.  S.)  Curious  Myths  of  the 
Middle  Ages.     y.  6d. 

Baring-Gould's  (Rev.  S.)  Origin  and  Develop- 
ment of  Religious  Belief.    2  vols.    35. 6d.  each. 

Becker's  ( W.  A.)  Callus :  or,  Roman  Scenes  in  the 
Time  of  Augustus.     With  26  Illus.     y.  6d. 


Becker's  (W.  A.)  Charicles:  or,  Illustrations  of 
the  Private  Life  of  the  Ancient  Greeks. 
With  26  Illustrations,  y.  6d. 

Bent's  (J.  T.)  The  Ruined  Cities  of  Mashona- 
land.  With  117  Illustrations,  y.  6d. 

Brassey's  (Lady)  A  Voyage  in  the  '  Sunbeam  '. 

With  66  Illustrations,     y.  6d. 

Buckle's  (H.  T.)  History  of  Civilisation  in 
England.  3  vols.  io.r.  6d. 

Churchill's  (Winston  S.)  The  Story  of  the 
Malakand  Field  Force,  1897.  With  6  Maps 
and  Plans,  y.  6d. 

Clodd's  (E.)  Story  of  Creation:  a  Plain  Account 
of  Evolution.  With  77  Illustrations,  y.  6d. 

Conybeare  (Rev.  W.  J.)  and  Howson's  (Very 
Rev.  J.  S.)  Life  and  Epistles  of  St.  Paul. 

With  46  Illustrations,     y.  Cut. 
Dougall's  (L.)  Beggars  All :  a  Novel,     y.  6d. 
Doyle's  (Sir  A.  Conan)  Micah  Clarke.    A  Tale  of 

Monmoutri's  Rebellion.  With  10  Illusts.  y.6d. 


34        MESSRS.  LONGMANS  &  CO.'S  STANDARD  AND  GENERAL  WORKS. 


The  Silver  Library — continued. 


Doyle's  (Sir  A.  Co  nan)  The  Captain  of  the 
Poles  tar,  and  other  Tales,  y.  6d. 

Doyle's  (Sir  A.  Conan )  The  Refugees :  A  Tale  of 
the  Huguenots.  With  25  Illustrations.  35  6d. 

Doyle's  (Sir  A.  Conan)  The  Stark  Hunro  Letters. 

y.6d. 

Froude's  (J.  A.)  The  History  of  England,  from 
the  Fall  of  Wolsey  to  the  Defeat  of  the 
Spanish  Armada.  12  vols.  y.  6d.  each. 

Fronde's  (J.  A.)  The  English  in  Ireland.  3  vols. 
IQS.  6d. 

Froude's  (J.  A.)  The  Divorce  of  Catherine  of 
Aragon.  3.?.  6J. 

Froude's  (J.  A.)  The  Spanish  Story  of  the 
Armada,  and  other  Essays.  3^.  6d. 

Froucle's(J. A. (English  Seamen  in  the  Sixteenth 
Century.  35.  6d. 

Froude's  (J.  A.)  Short  Studies  on  Great  Sub- 
jects. 4  vols.  y.  6d.  each. 

Froude's  (J.  A.)  Oceana,  or  England  and  Her 
Colonies.  With  9  Illustrations,  y.  6d, 

Froude's  (J.  A.)  The  Council  of  Trent,    y.  6d. 

Froude's  (J.  A.)  The  Life  and  Letters  of 
Erasmus.  35.  6d. 

Froude's  (J.  A.)  Thomas  Carlyle :  a  History  of 
his  Life. 
1795-1835.  2  vols.  js.     1834-1881.  2  vols.  js. 

Froude's  (J.  A.)  Caesar :  a  Sketch.     35.  6</. 

Froude's  (J.  A.)  The  Two  Chiefs  of  Dunboy :  an 

Irish  Romance  of  the  Last  Century.     35.  6d. 

Froude's  (J.   A.)    Writings,    Selections    from. 

3j.  6d. 

Oleig's  (Rev.  0.  R.)  Life  of  the  Duke  of 
Wellington.  With  Portrait.  35.  6d. 

Oreville's  (C.  C.  F.)  Journal  of  the  Reigns  of 
King  George  IV.,  King  William  IV.,  and 
Queen  Victoria.  8  vols. ,  y.  6d.  each. 

Haggard's  (H.  R.)  She :  A  History  of  Adventure. 
With  32  Illustrations,  y.  6d. 

Haggard's  (H.  R.)  Allan  Quatermain.  With 
20  Illustrations.  y.  6d. 

Haggard's  (H.  R.)  Colonel  Quaritch,  V.C.  :  a 
Tale  of  Country  Life.  With  Frontispiece 
and  Vignette.  3?.  6d. 

Haggard's  (H.  R.)|Cleopatra.  With  29  Illustra- 
tions, y.  6d. 

Haggard's  (H.  R.)  Eric  Brighteyes.  With  51 
Illustrations,  y.  6d. 


Haggard's  (H.  R.)  Beatrice.  With  Frontispiece 
and  Vignette,  y.  6d. 

Haggard's  (H.  R.)  Black  Heart  and  White  Heart. 

With  33  Illustrations.     y.  6d. 

Haggard's  (H.  R.)  Allan's  Wife.  With  34  Illus- 
trations. 35.  6d. 

Haggard  (H.  R.)  Heart  of  the  World.     With 

15  Illustrations.     y.  6d. 

Haggard's  (H.  R.)  Montezuma's  Daughter.  With 
25  Illustrations,  y.  6d. 

Haggard's  (H.  R.)  Swallow :  a  Tale  of  the  Great 
Trek.  With  8  Illustrations.  3*.  6d. 

Haggard's  (H.  R.)  The  Witch's  Head.  With 
16  Illustrations.  3^.  6d. 

Haggard's  (H.  R.)  Mr.  Meeson's  Will.    With 

16  Illustrations,     y.  6d. 

Haggard's  (H.  R.)  Nada  the  Lily.  With  23 
Illustrations.  y.  6d. 

Haggard's  (H.R.)  Dawn.  With  i6Illusts.  y.6d. 

Haggard's  (H.  R.)  The  People  of  the  Mist.  With 
16  Illustrations.  y.  6d. 

Haggard's  (H.  R.)  Joan  Haste.  With  20  Illus- 
trations, y.  6d. 

Haggard  (H.  R.)  and  Lang's  (A.)  The  World's 
Desire.  With  27  Illustrations,  y.  6d. 

Harte's  (Bret)  In  the  Carquinez  Woods  and 
other  Stories,  y.  6d. 

Helmholtz's  (Hermann  von)  Popular  Lectures 
on  Scientific  Subjects.  With  68  Illustrations. 
2  vols.  y.  6d.  each. 

Hope's  (Anthony)  The  Heart  of  Princess  Osra. 

With  9  Illustrations.      3-f.  6d. 

Hewitt's  (W.)  Visits  to   Remarkable   Places. 

With  80  Illustrations,     y.  6d. 

Jefferies'  (R.)  The   Story  of  My  Heart:    My 

Autobiography.     With  Portrait,     y.  6d. 

Jefferies'  (R.)  Field  and  Hedgerow.  With 
Portrait,  y.  6d. 

Jefferies'  (R.)  Red  Deer.  With  17  Illusts.   3^.  6d. 

Jefferies'  (R.)  Wood  Magic:  a  Fable.  With 
Frontispiece  and  Vignette  by  E.  V.  B.  3.5.  6d. 

Jefferies  (R.)  The  Toilers  of  the  Field.  With 
Portrait  from  the  Bust  in  Salisbury  Cathedral. 
y.  6d. 

Kaye  (Sir  J.)  and  Malleson's  (Colonel)  History 
of  the  Indian  Mutiny  of  1857-8.  6  vols. 
y.  6d.  each. 

Knight's  (E.  F.)  The  Cruise  of  the    •  Alerte ': 

the  Narrative  of  a  Search  for  Treasure  on 
the  Desert  Island  of  Trinidad.  With  2 
Maps  and  23  Illustrations,  y.  6d. 


MESSRS.  LONGMANS  &  CO.'S  STANDARD  AND  GENERAL  WORKS.        35 


The  Silver  Library — continued. 


Knight's  (E.  F.)  Where  Three  Empires  Meet :  a 

Narrative  of  Recent  Travel  in  Kashmir, 
Western  Tibet,  Baltistan,  Gilgit.  With  a  Map 
and  54  Illustrations.  35.  6d. 

Knight's  (E.  F.)  The  '  Falcon '  on  the  Baltic :  a 

Coasting  Voyage  from  Hammersmith  to 
Copenhagen  in  a  Three-Ton  Yacht.  With 
Map  and  n  Illustrations,  y.  6d. 

Kostlin's  (J.)  Life  of  Luther.  With  62  Illustra- 
tions and  4  Facsimiles  of  MSS.  y.  6d. 

Lang's  (A.)  Angling  Sketches.  With  20  Illustra- 
tions, y.  6d. 

Lang's  (A.)  Custom  and  Myth :  Studies  of  Early 
Usage  and  Belief.  3^.  6d. 

Lang's  (A.)  Cock  Lane  and  Common-Sense,  y.  6d. 

Lang's  (A.)  The  Book  of  Dreams  and  Ghosts, 

y.  6d. 

Lang's  (A.)  A  Honk  of  Fife:  a  Story  of  the 
Days  of  Joan  of  Arc.  With  13  Illustrations. 
y.  6d. 

Lang's  (A.)  Myth, Ritual,  and  Religion.  2  vols.  js. 

Lees  (J.  A.)  and  Clutterbuck's  (W.  J.)  B.C. 
1887,  A  Ramble  in  British  Columbia.  With 
Maps  and  75  Illustrations.  y.  6d 

Levett-Yeats'    (S.)    The    Chevalier    D'Auriac. 

35.  6d. 

Macaulay's  (Lord)  Complete  Works.  '  Albany  ' 
Edition.  With  12  Portraits.  12  vols.  35.  6d. 
each. 

Macaulay's  (Lord)  Essays  and  Lays  of  Ancient 

Rome,  etc.  With  Portrait  and  4  Illustrations 
to  the  '  Lays  '.  y.  6d. 

Hacleod's  (H.  D.)  Elements  of  Banking.    35.  6d. 

Harshman's  (J.  C.)  Memoirs  of  Sir  Henry 
Havelock.  35.  6d. 

Mason  (A.  E.  W.)  and  Lang's  (A.)  Parson  Kelly. 

3-r.  6d. 

Merivale's  (Dean)  History  of  the  Romans 
under  the  Empire.  8  vols.  35.  6d.  each. 

Merriman's  (H.  S.  Flotsam :  A  Tale  of  the 
Indian  Mutiny,  -^r.  6d. 

Mill's  (J.  S.)  Political  Economy,    y.  6d. 
Mill's  (J.  S.)  System  of  Logic,    y.  6d. 

Milner's  (Geo.)  Country  Pleasures :  the  Chroni- 
cle of  a  Year  chiefly  in  a  Garden.  35.  6d. 

Nansen's  (F.)  The  First  Crossing  of  Greenland. 

With  142  Illustrations  and  a  Map.     y.  6d. 

Phlllipps-Wolley's  (C.)  Snap :  a  Legend  of  the 
Lone  Mountain  With  13  Illustrations,  y.  6d. 


Proctor's  (R.  A.)  The  Orbs  Around  Us.     y.  6d. 
Proctor's  (R.  A.)  The  Expanse  of  Heaven,  y.  6d. 

Proctor's  (R.  A.)  Light  Science  for  Leisure 
Hours,  y.  6d. 

Proctor's  (R.  A.)  The  Moon.    y.  6d. 
Proctor's  (R.  A.)  Other  Worlds  than  Ours.  y.6d. 

Proctor's  (R.  A.)  Our  Place  among  Infinities : 

a  Series  of  Essays  contrasting  our  Little 
Abode  in  Space  and  Time  with  the  Infinities 
around  us.  y.  6d. 

Proctor's  (R.  A.)  Other  Suns  than  Ours.  y.  6d. 

Proctor's  (R.  A.)  Rough  Ways  made  Smooth. 

y.  6d. 

Proctor's(R.A.)PleasantWaysin  Science.  y.6d. 

Proctor's  (R.  A.)  Myths  and  Marvels  of  As- 
tronomy. 35.  6ti. 

Proctor's  (R.  A.)  Nature  Studies,    y.  6d. 

Proctor's  (R.  A.)  Leisure  Readings.  By  R.  A. 
PROCTOR,  EDWARD  CLODD,  ANDREW 
WILSON,  THOMAS  FOSTER,  and  A.  C. 
RANYARD.  With  Illustrations.  35.  6d. 

Rossetti's  (Maria  F.)  A  Shadow  of  Dante.  35.  6d. 

Smith's  (R.  Bos  worth)  Carthage  and  the  Cartha- 
ginians. With  Maps,  Plans,  etc.  y.  6d, 

Stanley's  (Bishop)  Familiar  History  of  Birds. 

With  160  Illustrations,     y.  6d. 

Stephen's  (Sir  Leslie)  The  Playground  of  Europe 
(The  Alps).  With  4  Illustrations.  35.  6d. 

Stevenson's  (R.  L.)  The  Strange  Case  of  Dr. 

Jekyll  and  Mr.  Hyde;  with  other  Fables,  y.bd. 

Stevenson  (R.  L.)  and  Osbourne's  (LI.)  The 
Wrong  Box.  y.  6d. 

Stevenson  (Robert  Louis)  and  Stevenson's 
(Fanny  van  de  Grift)  More  New  Arabian 
Nights. — The  Dynamiter.  3*.  6d. 

Trevelyan's  (Sir  G.  0.)  The  Early  History  of 
Charles  James  Fox.  y.  6d. 

Weyman's  (Stanley  J.)  The  House  of  the 
Wolf:  a  Romance.  3*.  6d. 

Wood's  (Rev.  J.  G.)  Petland  Revisited.  With 
33  Illustrations  3^.  6d. 

Wood's  (Rev.  J.  G.)  Strange  Dwellings.  With 
60  Illustrations,  y.  6d. 

Wood's  (Rev.  J.  G.)  Out  of  Doors.  With  n 
Illustrations,  y.  6d. 


MESSRS.  LONGMANS  &  CO.'S  STANDARD  AND  GENERAL  WORKS. 


Cookery,   Domestic  Management,   &e. 

De  Sails   (Mrs.) — continued. 


Acton.  —  MODERN  COOKERY.  By 
ELIZA  ACTON.  With  150  Woodcuts.  Fcp. 
8vo.,  45.  6d. 

Angwin. — SIMPLE  HINTS  ON  CHOICE 
OF  FOOD,  with  Tested  and  Economical 
Recipes.  For  Schools,  Homes,  and  Classes 
for  Technical  Instruction.  ByM.C.  ANGWIN, 
Diplomate  (First  Class)  of  the  National 
Union  for  the  Technical  Training  of  Women, 
etc.  Crown  8vo.,  is. 

Ashby. — HEALTH  IN  THE  NURSERY. 
By  HENRY  ASHBY,  M.D.,  F.R.C.P.,  Physi- 
cian to  the  Manchester  Children's  Hospital. 
With  25  Illustrations.  Crown  8vo.,  35.  net. 

Bull  (THOMAS,  M.D.). 

HINTS  TO  MOTHERS  ON  THE  MAN- 
AGEMEA  T  OF  THEIR  HEALTH  DURING  THE 
PERIOD  OF  PREGNANCY.  Fcp.  8vo.,  sewed, 
is.  6d.  ;  cloth,  gilt  edges,  2s.  net. 

THE  MATERNAL  MANAGEMENT  OF 
CHILDREN  IN  HEALTH  AND  DISEASE. 
Fcp.  8vo.,  sewed,  is.  6d. ;  cloth,  gilt 
edges,  2s.  net. 

De  Sails  (Mrs.). 

A  LA  MODE  COOKERY:  Up-to- 
date  Recipes.  With  24  Plates  (16  in 
Colour).  Crown  8vo.,5s.  net. 

CAKES  AND  CONFECTIONS  A  LA 
MODE.  Fcp.  8vo.,  is.  6d. 

DOGS  :  A  Manual  for  Amateurs. 
Fcp.  8vo.,  is.  6d. 

DRESSED  GAME  AND  POULTRY  A  LA 
MODE.  Fcp.  8vo.,  is.  6d. 

DRESSED  VEGETABLES  A  LA  MODE. 
Fcp.  8vo.,  is  6d. 

DRINKS  A  LA  MODE.  Fcp.  8vo.,  is.6d. 


ENTREES  A  LA  MODE.  Fcp.  8vo., 
is.  6d. 

f LORAL  DECORATIONS.  Fcp.  8vo., 
is.  6d. 

GARDENING  A  LA  MODE.  Fcp.  8vo. 
Part  I.,  Vegetables,  is.  6d.  Part  II., 
Fruits,  is.  6d. 

NATIONAL  VIANDS  A  LA  MODE.  Fcp. 
8vo.,  is.  6d. 

NEW-LAID  EGGS.     Fcp.  8vo.,  is.  6d. 

OYSTERS  A  LA  MODE.  Fcp.  8vo., 
is.  6d. 

PUDDINGS  AND  PASTRY  A  LA  MODE. 

Fcp.  8vo.,  is.  6d. 
SAVOURIES  A  LA  MODE.     Fcp.  8vo., 

is.6d. 

SOUPS  AND  DRESSED  FISH  A  LA 
MODE.  Fcp.  8vo.,  is.  6d. 

SWEETS  AND  SUPPER  DISHES  A  LA 
MODE.  Fcp.  8vo.,  is.  6d. 

TEMPTING  DISHES  FOR  SMALL  IN- 
COMES. Fcp.  8vo.,  is.  6d. 

WRINKLES  AND  NOTIONS  FOR 
EVERY  HOUSEHOLD.  Crown  8vo. ,  is.  6d. 

Lear. — MAIGRE  COOKERY.  By  H.  L. 
SIDNEY  LEAR.  i6mo.,  25. 

Poole. — COOKERY  FOR  THE  DIABETIC. 
By  W.  H.  and  Mrs.  POOLE.  With  Preface 
by  Dr.  PAVY.  Fcp.  8vo.,  2s.  6d. 

Rotheram. — HOUSEHOLD  COOKERY 
RECIPES.  By  M.  A.  ROTHERAM,  First  Class 
Diplomee,  National  Training  School  of 
Cookery,  London  ;  Instructress  to  the  Bed- 
fordshire County  Council.  Crown  8vo.,  2s. 


The  Fine  Arts  and  Music. 

Burne-Jones. — THE  BEGINNING  OF  Hamlin. — A     TEXT-BOOK    OF    THE 

THE    WORLD  :     Twenty-five    Pictures    by  |  HISTORY  OF  ARCHITECTURE.     By  A.  D.  F. 

Sir  EDWARD  BURNE-JONES,  Bart.     Medium  HAMLIN,    A.M.      With    229    Illustrations. 

4to.,  Boards,  js.  6d.  net.  Crown  8vo.,  7$.  6d. 

Burns  and  Colenso. — LIVING  ANA-    Haweis  (Rev.  H.  R.). 


TOMY.  By  CECIL  L.  BURNS,  R.B.A.,  and 
ROBERT  J.  COLENSO,  M.A.,  M.D.  40  Plates, 
uj  by  8f  ins.,  each  Plate  containing  Two 
Figures — (a)  A  Natural  Male  or  Female 
Figure  ;  (b)  The  same  Figure  Anatomatised. 
In  a  Portfolio,  ys.  6d.  net. 


Music  AND  MORALS.  With  Portrait 
of  the  Author.  Crown  8vo.,  6s.  net. 

MY  MUSICAL  LIFE.  With  Portrait 
of  Richard  Wagner  and  3  Illustrations. 
Crown  8vo.,  6s.  net. 


MESSRS.  LONGMANS  &  CO.'S  STANDARD  AND  GENERAL  WORKS.         37 


The  Fine  Arts  and  Music — continued. 


Huish,   Head,   and    Longman.— 

SAMPLERS  AND  TAPESTRY  EMBROIDERIES. 
By  MARCUS  B.  HUISH,  LL.B. ;  also  'The 
Stitchery  of  the  Same,'  by  Mrs.  HEAD  ; 
and  '  Foreign  Samplers,'  by  Mrs.  C.  J. 
LONGMAN.  With  30  Reproductions  in 
Colour,  and  40  Illustrations  in  Mono- 
chrome. 4to.,  £2  25.  net. 

Hullah. — THE  HISTORY  OF  MODERN 

Music.     By  JOHN  HULLAH.     8vo.,  8s.  6d. 

Jameson  (Mrs.  ANNA). 

SACRED  AND  LEGENDARY  ART,  con- 
taining Legends  of  the  Angels  and  Arch- 
angels, the  Evangelists,  the  Apostles,  the 
Doctors  of  the  Church,  St.  Mary  Mag- 
dalene, the  Patron  Saints,  the  Martyrs, 
the  Early  Bishops,  the  Hermits,  and  the 
Warrior-Saints  of  Christendom,  as  repre- 
sented in  the  Fine  Arts.  With  19  Etchings 
and  187  Woodcuts.  2  vols.  8vo.,  205.  net. 

LEGENDS  OF  THE  MONASTIC  ORDERS, 
as  represented  in  the  Fine  Arts,  com- 
prising the  Benedictines  and  Augustines, 
and  Orders  derived  from  their  Rules,  the 
Mendicant  Orders,  the  Jesuits,  and  the 
Order  of  the  Visitation  of  St.  Mary.  With 
ii  Etchings  and  88  Woodcuts.  i  vol. 
8vo.,  los.  net. 

LEGENDS  OF  THE  MADONNA,  OR 
BLESSED  VIRGINM.ARY.  Devotional  with 
and  without  the  Infant  Jesus,  Historical 
from  the  Annunciation  to  the  Assumption, 
as  represented  in  Sacred  and  Legendary 
Christian  Art.  With  27  Etchings  and 
165  Woodcuts,  i  vol.  8vo.,  IDS.  net. 

THE  HISTORY  OF  OUR  LORD,  as  ex- 
emplified in  Works  of  Art,  with  that  of 
His  Types,  St.  John  the  Baptist,  and 
other  persons  of  the  Old  and  New  Testa- 
ment. Commenced  by  the  late  Mrs. 
JAMESON  ;  continued  and  completed  by 
LADY  EASTLAKE.  With  31  Etchings 
and  281  Woodcuts.  2  vols.  8vo.,  205.  net. 

Kristeller.  —  ANDREA      MANTEGNA  . 

By  PAUL  KRISTELLER.  English  Edition  by 
S.  ARTHUR  STRONG,  M.A.,  Librarian  to  the 
House  of  Lords,  and  at  Chatsworth.  With 
26  Photogravure  Plates  and  162  Illustrations 
in  the  Text.  410.,  gilt  top,  £3  IDS.  net. 

Macfarren.  —  LECTURES    ON    HAR- 
MONY.     By  Sir  GEORGE  A.   MACFARREN. 

8VO.,  I2S. 


Morris  (WILLIAM). 

ARCHITECTURE,  INDUSTRY  AND 
WEALTH.  Collected  Papers.  Crown 
8vo.,  6s.  net. 

HOPES  AND  FEARS  FOR  ART.  Five 
Lectures  delivered  in  Birmingham,  Lon- 
don, etc.,  in  1878-1881.  Cr  8vo.,  45.  6d. 

AN  ADDRESS  DELIVERED  AT  THE 
DISTRIBUTION  OF  PRIZES  TO  STUDENTS 
OF  THE  BIRMINGHAM  MUNICIPAL  SCHOOL 
OF  ART  ON  2iST  FEBRUARY,  1894.  8vo., 
25.  6d.  net.  (Printed  in  '  Golden  '  Type.) 

SOME  HINTS  ON  PATTERN-DESIGN- 
ING '  a  Lecture  delivered  at  the  Working 
Men's  College,  London,  on  loth  Decem- 
ber, 1881.  8vo.,  25.  6d.  net.  (Printed  in 
'  Golden '  Type.) 

ARTS  AND  ITS  PRODUCERS  (1888) 
AND  THE  ARTS  AND  CRAFTS  OF  To-DAY 
(1889).  8vo.,  25.  6d.  net.  (Printed  in 
'  Golden '  Type.) 

ARCHITECTURE  AND  HISTORY,  AND 
WESTMINSTER  ABBEY.  Two  Papers 
read  before  the  Society  for  the  Protection 
of  Ancient  Buildings.  8vo.,  2s.  6d.  net. 
(Printed  in  '  Golden'  Type.) 

ARTS    AND    CRAFTS  ASSAYS.      By 
Members  of  the  Arts  and  Crafts  Exhibition 
Society.     With  a   Preface   by  WILLIAM 
MORRIS.      Crown  8vo.,  25.  6d.  net. 
%*  For    Mr.    William    Morris's   other 
!  Works,  see  pp.  24,  27,  28  and  40. 

Robertson. — OLD  ENGLISH  SONGS 
AND  DANCES.  Decorated  in  Colour  by  W. 
GRAHAM  ROBERTSON.  Royal  410.,  425.  net. 

Vanderpoel. —  COLOUR    PROBLEMS: 

a  Practical  Manual  for  the  Lay  Student  of 
Colour.  By  EMILY  NOYES  VANDERPOEL. 
With  117  Plates  in  Colour.  Square  8vo., 
215.  net. 

Van  Dyke. — A  TEXT-BOOK  ON  THE 
HISTORY  OF  PAINTING.  By  JOHN  C.  VAN 
DYKE.  With  no  Illustrations.  Cr.  8vo.,  65. 

Wellington. — A  DESCRIPTIVE  AND 
HISTORICAL  CATALOGUE  OF  THE  COLLEC- 
TIONS OF  PICTURES  AND  SCULPTURE  AT 
APSLEY  HOUSE,  LONDON.  By  EVELYN, 
Duchess  of  Wellington.  Illustrated  by  52 
Photo-Engravings,  specially  executed  by 
BRAUN,  CLEMENT,  &  Co.,  of  Paris.  2  vols., 
royal  4to.,  £6  65.  net. 

Willard.  —  HISTORY  OF  MODERN 
ITALIAN  ART.  By  ASHTON  ROLLINS 
WILLARD.  Part  I.  Sculpture.  Part  II. 
Painting.  Part  III.  Architecture.  With 
Photogravure  Frontispiece  and  numerous 
full-page  Illustrations.  8vo.,  2is.  net. 


MESSRS.  LONGMANS  &  CO.'S  STANDARD  AND  GENERAL  WORKS. 


Miscellaneous  and  Critical  Works. 


Auto  da  Fe  and  other  Essays: 

some  being  Essays  in  Fiction.  By  the 
Author  of  '  Essays  in  Paradox  '  and  '  Ex- 
ploded Ideas'.  Crown  8vo.,  55. 

Bagehot. — LITERARY  STUDIES.  By 
WALTER  BAGEHOT.  With  Portrait.  3  vols. 
Crown  8vo.,  35.  6d.  each. 

Baker.  —  EDUCA  TION  AND  LIFE  : 
Papers  and  Addresses.  By  JAMES  H. 
BAKER,  M.A.,  LL.D.  Crown  8vo.,  45.  6d. 

Baring-Gould. —  CURIOUS  MYTHS  OF 
THE  MIDDLE  AGES.  By  Rev.  S.  BARING- 
GOULD.  Crown  8vo.,  35.  6d. 

Baynes.  —  SHAKESPEARE  STUDIES, 
and  other  Essays.  By  the  late  THOMAS 
SPENCER  BAYNES,  LL.B.,  LL.D.  With  a 
Biographical  Preface  by  Professor  LEWIS 
CAMPBELL.  Crown  8vo.,  js.  6d. 

Bonnell.  -  -  CHARLOTTE  BRONTE, 
GEORGE  ELIOT,  JANE  AUSTEN :  Studies  in 
their  Works.  By  HENRY  H.  BONNELL. 
Crown  8vo.,  ys.  6d.  net. 

Booth. — THE  DISCOVERY  AND  DE- 
CIPHERMENT OF  THE  TRILINGUAL  CUNEI- 
FORM INSCRIPTIONS.  By  ARTHUR  JOHN 
BOOTH,  M.A.  With  a  Plan  of  Persepolis. 
8vo.  145.  net. 

Charities  Register,  The  Annual, 

AND  DIGEST:  being  a  Classified  Register 
of  Charities  in  or  available  in  the  Metropolis. 
8vo.,  55.  net. 

Christie. — SELECTED  ESSAYS,  By 
RICHARD  COPLEY  CHRISTIE,  M.A.,  Oxon. 
Hon.  LL.D.,  Viet.  With  2  Portraits  and  3 
other  Illustrations.  8vo.,  125.  net. 

Dickinson. — KING  ARTHUR  IN  CORN- 
WALL. By  W.  HOWSHIP  DICKINSON,  M.D. 
With  5  Illustrations.  Crown  8vo.,  45.  6d. 

Essays  in  Paradox.    By  the  Author 

of  '  Exploded  Ideas  '  and  '  Times  and 
Days  '.  Crown  8vo.,  55. 

Evans. — THE  ANCIENT  STONE  IM- 
PLEMENTS, WEAPONS  AND  ORNAMENTS  OF 
GREAT  BRITAIN.  By  Sir  JOHN  EVANS, 
K.C.B.  With  537  Illustrations.  8vo., 
IDS.  6d.  net. 

Exploded  Ideas,^^vz>  OTHER  ESSA  YS. 

By  the  Author  of '  Times  and  Days '.  Cr. 
8vo.,  55. 


Frost.  —  A  MEDLEY  BOOK.  By 
GEORGE  FROST.  Crown  8vo.,  35.  6d.  net. 

Geikie. —  THE  VICAR  AND  HIS  FRIENDS. 
Reported  by  CUNNINGHAM  GEIKIE,  D.D., 
LL.D.  Crown  8vo.,  55.  net. 

Gilkes.  —  THE  NEW  REVOLUTION. 
By  A.  H.  GILKES,  Master  of  Dulwich 
College.  Fcp.  8vo.,  is.  net. 

Haggard  (H.  RIDER). 

A  FARMER'S  YEAR:  being  his  Com- 
monplace Book  for  1898.  With  36  Illus- 
trations. Crown  8vo.,  75.  6d.  net. 

RURAL  ENGLAND.  With  23  Agri- 
cultural Maps  and  56  Illustrations  from 
Photographs.  2  vols.,  8vo.,  365.  net. 

Hoenig.  —  INQUIRIES     CONCERNING 

THE  TACTICS  OF  THE  FUTURE.  By  FRITZ 
HOENIG.  With  i  Sketch  in  the  Text  and  5 
Maps.  Translated  by  Captain  H.  M.  BOWER. 
8vo.,  155.  net. 

H.utchinson. — DREAMS  AND  THEIR 
MEANINGS.  By  HORACE  G.  HUTCHINSON. 
8vo.,  gilt  top,  gs.  6d.  net. 

Jefferies  (RICHARD). 

FIELD  AND  HEDGEROW:  With  Por- 
trait. Crown  8vo.,  35.  6d. 

THE  STORY  OF  MY  HEART:  my 
Autobiography.  Crown  8vo.,  35.  6d. 

RED  DEER.  With  17  Illustrations. 
Crown  8vo.,  35.  6d. 

THE  TOILERS  OF  THE  FIELD.  Crown 
8vo.,  35.  6d. 


WOOD  MAGIC 
8vo.,  35.  6d. 


a    Fable.      Crown 


Jekyll  (GERTRUDE). 

HOME  AND  GARDEN:  Notes  and 
Thoughts,  Practical  and  Critical,  of  a 
Worker  in  both.  With  53  Illustrations 
from  Photographs.  8vo.,  105.  6d.  net. 

WOOD  AND  GARDEN:  Notes  and 
Thoughts,  Practical  and  Critical,  of  a 
Working  Amateur.  With  71  Photographs. 
8vo..  IDS.  6d.  net. 


MESSRS.  LONGMANS  &  CO.'S  STANDARD  AND  GENERAL  WORKS.        39 


Miscellaneous  and  Critical  Works — continued. 


Johnson  (J.&J.  H.). 

THE  PATENTEE'S  MANUAL  :  a 
Treatise  on  the  Law  and  Practice  of 
Letters  Patent.  8vo.,  IDS.  6d. 

AN  EPITOME  OF  THE  LAW  AND 
PRACTICE  CONNECTED  WITH  PATENTS 
FOX  INVENTIONS,  with  a  reprint  of  the 
Patents  Acts  of  1883,  1885,  1886  and 
1888.  Crown  8vo.,  2s.  6d. 


Joyce. —  THE  ORIGIN  AND  HISTORY 
OF  IRISH  NAMES  OF  PLACES.  By  P.  W. 
JOYCE,  LL.D.  2  vols.  Crown  8vo.,  55.  each. 


Lang  (ANDREW). 

LETTERS  TO  DEAD  AUTHORS.  Fcp. 
8vo.,  25.  6d.  net. 

BOOKS  AND  BOOKMEN.  With  2 
Coloured  Plates  and  17  Illustrations. 
Fcp.  8vo.,  25.  6d.  net. 

OLD  FRIENDS.  Fcp.  8vo.,  2s.  6d.  net. 

LETTERS  ON  LITERATURE.  Fcp. 
8vo.,  2s.  6d.  net. 

ESSAYS  IN  LITTLE.  With  Portrait 
of  the  Author.  Crown  8vo.,  2S.  6d. 

COCK  LANE  AND  COMMON-SENSE. 
Crown  8vo.,  35.  6d. 

THE  BOOK  OF  DREAMS  AND  GHOSTS. 
Crown  8vo.,  35.  6d. 


Maryon. — How  THE  GARDEN  GREW. 

By  MAUD  MARYON.     With  4  Illustrations. 
Crown  8vo.,  55.  net. 


Matthews. — NOTES  ON  SPEECH- 
MAKING.  By  BRANDER  MATTHEWS.  Fcp. 
8vo.,  is.  6d.  net. 


Max  Milller  (The  Right  Hon.  F.). 

COLLECTEDWORKS.   iSvols.   Crown 
8vo.,  55.  each. 

Vol.  I.  NATURAL  RELIGION:  the  Gifford 
Lectures,  1888. 

Vol.  II.  PHYSICAL  RELIGION:  the  Gifford 
Lectures,  1890. 

Vol.  III.   ANTHROPOLOGICAL  RELIGION: 
the  Gifford  Lectures,  1891. 

Vol.  IV.    THEOSOPHY;  or,  Psychological 
Religion  :  the  Giftbrd  Lectures,  1892. 


CHIPS  FROM  A  GERMAN  WORKSHOP. 
Vol.  V.  Recent  Essays  and  Addresses. 
Vol.  VI.  Biographical  Essays. 

Vol.  VII.  Essays  on  Language  and  Litera- 
ture. 

Vol.   VIII.    Essays   on    Mythology    and 
Folk-lore. 


Vol.  IX.  THE  ORIGIN  AND  GROWTH  OF 
RELIGION,  as  Illustrated  by  the  Re- 
ligions of  India :  the  Hibbert  Lectures, 
1878. 

Vol.  X.   BIOGRAPHIES  OF  WORDS,  AND 

THE  HOME  OF  THE  A.RYAS. 

Vols.  XL,  XII.  THE  SCIENCE  OF 
LANGUAGE  :  Founded  on  Lectures  de- 
livered at  the  Royal  Institution  in  1861 
and  1863.  2  vols.  105. 

Vol.  XIII.  INDIA  :  What  can  it  Teach 
Us? 

Vol.  XIV.  INTRODUCTION  TO  THE 
SCIENCE  OF  RELIGION.  Four  Lectures, 
1870. 

Vol.  XV.  RAMAKRISHXA  :  his  Life  and 
Sayings. 

Vol.  XVI.  THREE  LECTURES  ON  THE 
VBDANTA  PHILOSOPHY,  1894. 

Vol.  XVII.  LAST  ESSAYS.  First  Series. 
Essays  on  Language,  Folk-lore,  etc. 

Vol.  XVIII.  LASTESSAYS.  Second  Series. 
Essays  on  the  Science  of  Religion. 


4o        MESSRS.  LONGMANS  &  CO.'S  STANDARD  AND  GENERAL  WORKS. 


Miscellaneous  and  Critical  Works— continued. 

Milner.— COUNTRY  PLEASURES:  the    Soulsby  (Lucv  H.  M.)— continued. 
Chronicle   of  a  Year   chiefly  in  a  Garden. 


By  GEORGE  MILNER.     Crown  8vo.,  3$.  bd. 

Morris. — SIGNS  OF  CHANGE.  Seven 
Lectures  delivered  on  various  Occasions. 
By  WILLIAM  MORRIS.  Post  8vo.,  4$.  6d. 

Parker  and  Unwin. — THE  ART  OF 

BUILDING  A  HOME  :  a  Collection  of 
Lectures  and  Illustrations.  By  BARRY 
PARKER  and  RAYMOND  UNWIN.  With  68 
Full-page  Plates.  8vo.,  IDS.  6d.  net. 

Pollock.— JANE  AUSTEN:  her  Con- 
temporaries and  Herself.  By  WALTER 
HERRIES  POLLOCK.  Cr.  8vo.,  3$.  6d.  net. 

Poore  (GEORGE'  VIVIAN,  M.D.). 

ESSAYS  ON  RURAL  HYGIENE.  With 
13  Illustrations.  Crown  8vo.,  6s.  6d. 

THE  DWELLING  HOUSE.  With  36 
Illustrations.  Crown  8vo.,  35.  6d. 

THE  EARTH  IN  RELATION  TO  THE 
PRESERVATION  AND  DESTRUCTION  OF 
CONTAGIA  :  being  the  Milroy  Lectures 
delivered  at  the  Royal  College  of  Physi- 
cians in  1899,  together  with  other  Papers 
on  Sanitation.  With  13  Illustrations. 
Crown  8vo.,  55. 

COLONIAL  AND  CAMP  SANITATION. 
With  ii  Illustrations.  Cr.  8vo.,  2s.  net. 

Rossetti.  —A  SHADOW  OF  DANTE  : 
being  an  Essay  towards  studying  Himself, 
his  World  and  his  Pilgrimage.  By  MARIA 
FRANCESCA  ROSSETTI.  Crown  8vo.,  35.  6d. 


Seria   Ludo.      By   a    DILETTANTE. 

Post  410. ,  55.  net. 

*^*  Sketches  and   Verses,  mainly  reprinted 
from  the  St.  James's  Gazette. 

Shadwell.  —  DRINK  :  TEMPERANCE 
AND  LEGISLATION.  By  ARTHUR  SHADWELL, 
M.A.,  M.D.  Crown  8vo.,  55.  net. 

Soulsby  (Lucv  H.  M.). 

STRAY     THOUGHTS    ON    READING. 
Fcp.  8vo.,  2s.  6d.  net. 

STRAY  THOUGHTS  FOR  GIRLS.  i6mo., 

is.  6d   net. 

10,000/5/03. A.  U.  P. 


STRA  Y  THOUGHTS  FOR  MOTHERS  AND< 
TEACHERS.     Fcp.  8vo.,  zs.  6d.  net. 

STRAY    THOUGHTS    FOR    INVALIDS. 
i6mo.,  2J.  net. 

STRAY  THOUGHTS  ON  CHARACTER. 
Fcp.  8vo.,  as.  6d.  net. 

Southey. — THE  CORRESPONDENCE  OF 
ROBERT  So  UTHEY  WITH  CAROLINE  BOWLES. 
Edited  by  EDWARD  DOWDEN.  8vo.,  145. 


Stevens. — ON  THE  STOWAGE  OF  SHIPS 
AND  THEIR  CARGOES.  With  Information  re- 
garding Freights,  Charter- Parties,  etc.  By 
ROBERT  WHITE  STEVENS.  8vo.,  ais. 


Thuillier. — THE  PRINCIPLES  OF  LAND 
DEFENCE,  AND  THEIR  APPLICATION  TO  THE 
CONDITIONS  OF  TO-DAY.  By  Captain  H. 
F.  THUILLIER,  R.E.  W7ith  Maps  and  Plans. 
8vo.,  i2s.  6d.  net. 


Turner  and  Sutherland. — THE  DE- 
VELOPMENT OF  AUSTRALIAN  LITERATURE. 
By  HENRY  GYLES  TURNER  and  ALEXANDER 
SUTHERLAND.  With  Portraits  and  Illustra- 
tions. Crown  8vo.,  55. 


Warwick. — PROGRESS  IN  WOMEN'S 
EDUCA  TIONIN  THE  BRITISH  EMPIRE  :  being 
the  Report  of  Conferences  and  a  Congress 
held  in  connection  with  the  Educational 
Section,  Victorian  Era  Exhibition.  Edited 
by  the  COUNTESS  OF  WARWICK.  Cr.  8vo.  6s. 


Weathers. — A  PRACTICAL  GUIDE  TO 
GARDEN  PLANTS.  By  JOHN  WEATHERS, 
F.R.H.S.  With  159  Diagrams.  8vo.,  2is. 
net. 


Whittall. — FREDERICK  THE  GREA  r 
ON  KINGCRAFT,  from  the  Original  Manu- 
script ;  with  Reminiscences  and  Turkish 
Stories.  By  Sir  J.  WILLIAM  WHITTALL, 
President  of  the  British  Chamber  of  Com- 
merce of  Turkey.  8vo.,  75.  6d.  net. 


UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA  LIBRARY 

Los  Angeles 
This  book  is  DUE  on  the  last  date  stamped  below. 


Form  L9-32m-8,'58(5876s4)444 


DD 


Wilkins  - 


491      Love  of  an 
H2753W65  uncrowned 


1903 


queen 


fllfii 


DD 
491 

H2753W65 
1903 


' 


